12 The Men of the Order vs Venus
by Daintress
Summary: AU since HBP, and the 12th in a series of 14 stories. Love finds a foothold even in the midst of war. A Power that the Dark Lord knows not.
1. Premise and Introduction

**The Men of the Order Vs. Venus**

**(Premise and Introduction)**

**Premise: **

The men of the Order are fighting against more than just Voldemort (Though we'll see his influence as well, I'm sure). A crazy deity named Venus has just decided to make life a bit more difficult er – interesting. So who wins? The boys or Venus? You can vote at the end of each "Round." You can even vote at the end of the following Intro chapter, which follows from my last story's Intermission. This Intro chapter takes place in the summer before Harry's 7th year at Hogwarts (2007, I imagine). Dates will be very important from here on out, as several years will pass in this fic.

_Additional information: Alright, after more than one request, I'm going to try to further explain the nature of the voting. Think of "men" as a general catagory of people. -Most of my readers seem to be female, but if you aren't, please don't take offense at this, because it is all in good fun and not meant to be cruel.- Men in general tend to shy away from commitment. I'm not talking about committing to a five year car payment, or even a thirty year mortgage. They seem to be able to handle those just fine. I'm speaking specifically about commitment stemming from love. Falling in love is often seen as a weakness or something. Listen once through to the song "Another One Bites The Dust," which has been traditionally requested by the best man at every wedding ever since it was written, and you'll see what I mean. The battle today is Sirius vs. Venus, which is the goddess of Love. The idea is that he's resisting falling in love. How well is he doing? Or has he already lost? THAT's what we're voting on. I hope this clears things up. I've had a lot of fun setting this story up for this purpose, and it won't be as much fun to read if it still doesn't make sense to everyone. Let me know - I hope that helps. _

**Introduction:**

Sirius threw himself onto the chair in front of the fire. Remus had thoughtfully parked his immobile behind off to the side on a couch. Possibly because there was a lamp nearby. He'd been reading all day. Literally.

Sirius let out an exasperated sigh, which was promptly and thoroughly ignored. "Moony?" he asked finally.

Remus raised his eyes from letter number 47. Yes, he'd been counting. And the pile of unopened letters at his feet was still much larger than the stack of opened ones on the couch beside him. Mur had given him every letter she'd tried to send him over the last 15 years just before she'd gone to see Severus this morning. When she'd left, he'd seen her shrinking a stack of letters for her best mate as well. He was still astounded at how persistent she'd been. He was already becoming tired of hearing her requests for help with her father and arguments for why he should try to help Sirius, and suggestions about who he should contact at the Ministry. Nearly every letter was a declaration of his friend's innocence and a plea for Remus' help. He couldn't help but wonder if he would have believed her if he'd received any of these. He also couldn't help but imagine how peeved Severus was going to be if his letters were similar.

"I'm bored," Sirius said, when he knew he had his attention. This of course was not the truth. The truth was that he wanted desperately to know what was in those letters, but he was too proud to ask. Remus, who could imagine exactly what was going through his friend's mind, was perfectly aware of this. He was also aware that Mur had charmed each and every letter to do something awful if the wrong person tried to read it. That had been her habit when they were children as well, and even without the amusing warnings at the top of the parchment, he would have known better than to let Sirius read them. Sirius had apparently thought of this as well, as he made no attempt to take the letters.

"Does Molly need any help in the kitchen?" Remus asked, maddeningly ignoring the obvious hopeful look on Sirius' face.

"Tonks is with her."

"Does Molly need any help in the kitchen?" Remus said, in the same bored tone of voice. Sirius laughed.

"Probably. Come on, Moony!"

At this point Muriel, possibly drawn by Sirius' annoyed state of mind, came into the room carrying yet another stack of letters. Her face was very sad. She sat down wordlessly before the fire and began casting the sealed envelopes in, one at a time. The first thought in Sirius' head was that those were probably the ones she'd written to him, if she'd written him at all. This made her pause. She turned around just as he was getting up to leave in a huff.

"Marisa Ahles," she whispered. "Sev said it happened just after I left. He tried to warn her – "

Sirius felt the angry flush drain from his face. He remembered Marisa. He'd taken her to a dance once because he'd been too shy to ask Mur. Snape had warned the Order that her family was a target not two weeks after Mur's disappearance, but they had been unable to save her. The wards had been shattered, and by the time Sirius and James had arrived in response, the Dark Mark was already glowing in the sky. James had stayed to help the Aurors who arrived moments later, but Sirius had left to take the news to Dumbledore. He was thankful now that there were no images in his mind for Mur to glean. It looked like it was hitting her hard enough as it was.

He changed direction abruptly and sat down beside her, putting an arm around her shoulders. The letters fell out of her hands and scattered in her lap as she leaned into him, tears streaming down her face in silence. After several moments Mur could hear Remus shifting paper again behind her and she sat up again. Gathering up the remaining letters she tossed them all into the back of the fireplace. Then she looked at Sirius, who was watching them burn. "Thanks," she whispered.

He turned to face her and saw how sad she still looked. He pulled an encouraging smile and lifted a hand to push a stray lock of hair behind her ear.

"Mur!" The front door downstairs slammed shut and Severus' voice could be heard drifting up the stairs. Mur closed her eyes and shook her head as Sirius retracted his hand, already angry again.

"We're up here!" she called as he retreated back to his chair. She caught a glimpse of Remus shaking his head ruefully and winked at him. Severus appeared in the doorway a moment later.

"THIS is what you write to me when you've disappeared off the face of the planet?!" At this outburst Remus couldn't help but laugh. The disgusted look on the Potions Master's face was proof positive that his letters consisted of precisely the same thing as the ones she'd written to Remus.

"Oh sod off, Severus. I was desperate!"

"Yes, obviously," he retorted sarcastically with a demeaning glance at Sirius. It was clear that he thought she'd been desperate BEFORE she'd been banished. Sirius was standing before Mur had a chance to retort, but Snape managed to get another word in. Remus found himself wondering later if perhaps, in his own way, the cranky professor had purposely diffused the situation. "If you wrote the same drivel to Lucius you'd best not forward it. He was in no more of a position to help your pet pooch than I!"

With that he exited the room, quite possibly congratulating himself for not getting hexed. "Miserable git! You'd think he'd be grateful that I even BOTHERED to write to him, after the way he treated me after 6th year!" Mur said laughingly. A moment later she'd left Remus and Sirius alone, and Sirius was still more desperate to know what was in all those letters. But Remus wasn't talking.


	2. Chapter 1 Flowers

**Draco vs. Venus: Round 1**

**Chapter 1 - Flowers**

**September, 2007**

****

"Who is she?" Draco Malfoy was staring toward the entrance to the Great Hall, his fork slowly lowering to his plate.  
  
"Didn't you see her last night?" Hermione asked. "She came in with the 1st years, but didn't get sorted. Professor McGonagal didn't even read her name." Draco had already left the table by the time Hermione finished speaking. She, Ron, and Harry exchanged amused glances. They watched as he pulled out his wand and flicked it in the direction of the open windows on the other side of the hallway.  
  
As he reached the girl he smiled and offered his hand. Everyone in the hall was watching by now because they'd been so curious about her after the sorting ceremony. "Hi, I'm Draco. I heard you might not have a place to sit." He omitted his last name on purpose in case she'd heard of him.  
  
"OH!" she said, startled. "Hello. My name's Ava." At this point a small, purple something came flying through the hall from the window. Draco caught the flower he'd summoned and offered it to her.  
  
"Nice to meet you. Why don't you join me for breakfast." Her eyes widened as she accepted this gift and let him lead her back to the Gryffindor table. On the way, he explained that he, himself, was in Slytherin house, but that he sat here with his friends. "So you'll fit right in," Harry heard him finish as they reached the table.  
  
"Very smooth," Ron muttered to Harry, earning himself an elbow from Hermione, who was already standing up to meet Ava. Draco introduced her to his friends, pausing after introducing Harry, but they were all rather surprised when she replied, "Pleased to meet you," just as she had for Ron and Hermione.  
  
Draco couldn't suppress a wry smile, which he directed at Harry. "I'm going to like this girl," he drawled. Ava grinned nervously as Ginny made her way over to them.  
  
"Hi, I'm Ginny Weasley," she said brightly, holding out her hand.  
  
"I'm Ava, Ava Riddel, nice to - " but she stopped abruptly as Ginny's outstretched hand flew to her mouth and she let out a muffled sob. Everyone else was silent, looking uncomfortably at one another. Ginny took two steps backward, then ran out of the hall. Dean Thomas gave Ava and Draco a dark look before hurrying after her.  
  
"What did I say?" Ava looked horrified. Harry, Ron, and Hermione weren't quite sure what to tell her, so it was Draco who spoke.  
  
"Ginny knew someone named Riddle once. He was really mean to her. Practically killed her in fact." He paused, looking to Harry for some clue what he should say. Getting none he finished quickly by saying, "It was a long time ago, I'm sure she'll be fine. It was just the shock of hearing the name.' He gestured for Ava to sit, and she did, still looking very upset. She barely ate.  
  
Neville Longbottom passed down class schedules, and Draco left to get his own from the Slytherin table. It had taken half of last year and a lot of owls over the summer, but he had managed to re-forge friendships with several members of his house. Crabbe was a lost cause but Goyle and several others were coming around. If he'd wanted to, he could have resumed his place of honor at the Slytherin table. Instead he grabbed his class schedule and headed for the staff table.  
  
Since Professor Snape's cover had been blown at the end of the last year, and Draco felt most comfortable with him, he asked him about Ava's class schedule. Snape was able to produce it, and Draco headed back to his friends. Hermione had gone to check on Ginny, and everyone else was ready for class.  
  
All Ava's classes were with the 1st years, so Draco didn't see her again until lunch. He was running late and was sorry to see that she'd already found a seat among the first years at the Ravenclaw table. But a slow smile was forming on his face by the time he found Harry, Ron, and Hermione and sat down. He'd remembered a spell his mother had made him learn as a child and cast it covertly. He watched out of the corner of his eye as Ava jumped back from the table, looking first at the small vase of flowers that had appeared in front of her, and then around the room, trying to figure out who had conjured them. Draco carefully averted his eyes and joined in the conversation which, to his surprise, was about Ava.  
  
Not expecting his attention so suddenly, Harry, Ron and Hermione fell silent when his eyes snapped back to them. "What?" he asked irritably.  
  
"Do you think she could really be Voldemort's daughter?" Hermione asked.  
  
Draco winced, but laughed the question off. "Of course not. I'm sure there are hundreds of muggles with a common last name like Riddle." But Hermione was frowning and didn't look so sure.  
  
After classes that day, Draco and Ron headed outside. It was early September and still warm enough to make an evening walk pleasant. Hermione was already doing homework, and she'd managed to drag Harry into it too. Draco didn't ask how Ron had gotten out of it. He was just glad for the company. Since their duel with Crabbe last year, Ron and Draco had become close, if somewhat antagonistic, friends. 

Their conversation faltered, however, when Draco spotted Ava coming out of the forbidden forest. He said a hasty good-bye to Ron and headed toward her, reminding himself how undignified it would look if he ran.  
  
'She's beautiful!' he thought, taking in the last rays of sunlight hitting her long blond hair. It wasn't until he got near her that he realized that she was also exhausted. She was breathing heavily, and looked at him gratefully when he offered his arm. 'I always hated walking this way with Pansy,' he thought, smiling to himself.  
  
They sat at the edge of the lake, watching the giant squid. Ava lay back in the grass, letting her heart rate slow. She wondered briefly what this boy meant by tracking her down, but was thankful that he hadn't asked why she'd been in the forest. She expected that he'd broken enough rules himself to know better than to ask. She watched him as he looked out over the lake. He was handsome, with his pale hair and skin. His serious eyes held a lot of the same care that she felt pressing in on her. Maybe that was why she let him hold her hand like that.  
  
She moved her hand out of his, having only just realized that it was resting there. 'For heaven's sake Ava, you only met him this morning!' she scolded herself.  
  
"So, what school did you transfer from," Draco asked finally. He was a little put out that she'd snatched her hand away so quickly, but reminded himself that he barely knew her. She looked a little startled at his question, but sat up to answer him anyway.  
  
"I, um, only got my letter a few weeks ago. I've never been to a magic school before." Draco's shock must have registered on his face because she continued hurriedly. "Professor McGonagal told me that Hogwarts chooses students by tracking magic use. Most kids, by the time they're 10 or 11, have accidentally used enough magic to be detected. But I didn't. I guess I didn't show any magic at all until just a few months ago." She fell silent. It was getting dark, but her eyes were still fixed somewhere out over the water.  
  
Draco had never heard of anyone not using magic until they were 17. He could see why she was so timid. There were probably 12 year olds here who knew more spells than she did. "What magic did you do?" he asked quietly.  
  
"I've got to get back." She jumped up abruptly, and before he could join her, she hurried off toward the castle. By the time Draco reached the Great Hall for dinner, Ava was nowhere to be seen. After dinner, he took Harry aside.  
  
"I'd like to borrow your invisibility cloak," he whispered. Harry gave him a shrewd look.  
  
"Going to find out where she sleeps?" he asked knowingly. Draco, however, was beyond being embarrassed.  
  
"Can I have it or not?" His eyes flashed, and Harry, painfully aware that they had not been friends for very long, nodded. He wasn't going to risk bringing back the old rivalry over a cloak.  
  
Draco felt a slight twinge of guilt for losing his temper with Harry as he stealthily climbed the staircase. He scowled at himself and buried it. Guilt is for Gryffindors.

He had a pretty good idea of where Ava slept. Several of the teachers had houses in Hogsmeade, or other nearby towns. But some stayed here in the castle. He knew where the teacher's quarters were, since he'd stayed the summer with Snape, and figured that Ava had probably been given a room in the same wing.  
  
He entered the hallway quietly, walking near the wall, but stopped at the sight of Professor Snape, with his head stuck into an open doorway. Draco moved closer.  
  
"You're sure you're alright?" Draco was surprised to hear the concern in Professor Snape's voice. As he came closer, he could hear someone crying softly. He knew it was Ava when he heard her answer from inside the room.  
  
"Really, Professor I'll be fine. Thank you." When Snape didn't leave, she added, "I just have a lot to think about, that's all." He nodded, and pulled the door shut, heading for his own quarters. Draco could hear that she was still sobbing quietly. He waited, standing outside her door, until he could hear nothing more, then he opened the door carefully and slipped inside. He quickly cast the spell he'd come to perform and slipped back downstairs, making his way to the Slytherin dungeon common room. He'd gotten a few things straight with Crabbe at the end of last year, and they had declared a shaky truce. He pulled the curtains of his bed closed, still wearing the invisibility cloak and pulled out his wand again. He charmed the curtains to scream if anyone touched them, then lay back to sleep, the cloak folded neatly under his pillow, grinning to himself in the dark.  
  
Draco past the cloak back to Harry at breakfast. Harry had a funny look on his face as he stuffed it back into his bag.

"She said her whole room was covered in flowers!" Parvati Patil said to Lavender Brown. They were sitting not far from them and exchanging the gossip of the day.  
  
"And she doesn't know how they got there?" At this, Draco winked at Harry, who grinned into his plate as Ron and Hermione joined them. Draco had decided that Ava should always have flowers. He waited until half way through breakfast, when several girls, some from each house, were crowded around Ava, and cast the spell again. Then he walked nonchalantly to the Slytherin table to ask Goyle about yesterday's transfiguration assignment. He made sure to look around just like everyone else when the girls all gasped, but then went about his business.


	3. Chapter 2 The Locket

_AN: It has come to my attention through reviews that I've got some new readership on this story. Thank you so much to those of you who've reviewed - I really love to hear from you, and I'm glad you're enjoying the story so far. I know I haven't posted much yet, but there's plenty to come._

_For your convenience, a brief outline on the history of Muriel Deesia:_

_1 - Grew up in the house next to Snape's, thus was his best friend, and his betrothed. Also, she is a natural Legilimens, a trait she shares with the Dark Lord, and doesn't need a spell to read minds._

_2 - Grew apart from Snape when he learned occlumency well enough to hide his feelings from her, thinking he didn't love her anymore. That was fifth year. Shortly thereafter, she started seeing Black._

_3 - Became engaged to Black during their final year at school, much to Snape's dismay. Put off the wedding in favor of Auror's training. Caught Snape and let him go, marking herself as a traitor to the Ministry. Her father had her banished to America._

_4 - Returned to Hogwarts in Harry's sixth year by way of the Sorting Hat. Brought Sirius back from beyond the veil, and lived through an entire term as DADA professor._

_There, that should help with the logistics. If you want the emotions that went with them, allow me to direct you to my other stories. They are numbered in the titles for easy reference, and if you go back to read them, you'll want to start with: 0 What Went Before. Thanks again so much for your reviews, and I hope you'll enjoy the rest of the story better with this information!_

_- Brandy_

****

**Draco vs. Venus: Round 1**

**Chapter 2 - The Locket**

**October, 2007**  
  
The 1st Quiddich match of the year was Ravenclaw vs. Hufflepuff. As they walked down to the pitch, Ron, Harry, and Hermione chatted happily. Draco, a few steps behind, was silent and obviously brooding. He'd tried so hard that first day to make an impression. But Ava had hardly spoken to him in the month since then. Every time he saw her, she looked sad, in spite of the flowers that appeared in front of her at every meal. When he walked toward her, she invariably found an excuse to head off in the other direction before he could say anything. He spotted her now in the stands and swished his wand casually in her direction. A garland of magnolias appeared over the back of her chair as she sat down to watch the match.  
  
Harry fell back and matched his steps to Draco's. He was pointing toward the Hufflepuff section where Ava, who'd just turned to look at the flowers, was sitting next to Justin Finch-Fletchly. He was talking into her ear, and she started giggling. "He's taking credit for your flowers, mate," Harry said quietly.

"I see it." Draco growled as they took their own seats on the other side of the pitch.

* * *

Harry and Ron were whispering loudly in Charms class long after Professor Flitwick had begun talking. They couldn't believe that it took him so long to catch them. Thinking that perhaps he was deaf, they practically hissed at one another. Finally he took notice.  
  
"Mr. Potter, Mr. Weasley? Is there something more important that you feel we should be discussing?" Their fellow Gryffindors, especially Hermione, turned in their seats and scowled at them, while the Hufflepuffs in class sniggered behind their hands.  
  
"Sorry, Professor Flitwick." Harry answered quickly, "I was just telling Ron that I don't know how to do the flower charm everyone's talking about. I was trying to convince him to ask Justin." Harry indicated the Hufflepuff boy Ava had been sitting with. He fought to keep a straight face as Justin's eyes widened.  
  
"Me? How would I know?" He looked worried.  
  
"Well, Harry says he heard that Ava was telling people she thought you sent her the flowers, and I wanted to learn how to do that trick too." Ron was careful not to look at Hermione. "Maybe you could show us?" he added hopefully. Harry and Ron exchanged a grin as the entire class turned toward Justin.  
  
"Well, er, I, um," Justin stammered. "I don't really know how to do that charm. I, um, wasn't the one who sent them to her." He looked horribly embarrassed, and for a moment Harry almost felt ashamed. But then he remembered Draco sulking at the last Quidditch match and decided it was worth it. He wished he hadn't had to tell Ron Draco's secret, since Ron really DID want to know that charm, and had been bothering Draco about it all week.  
  
When Professor Flitwick, hiding a smile behind a cup of tea, was finally able to get the class started again, Hermione was still fixing Ron with a penetrating stare. "What?" he mouthed at her. She shook her head and turned around abruptly in her seat. When class ended she shot out the door and headed for lunch before they could catch up with her.  
  
Draco was already sitting with Goyle at the Slytherin table when Harry and Ron arrived. "Hi Goyle," they both said. Gregory Goyle, who'd thought of Draco as his best friend for most of his life, was a little annoyed by their intrusion, but shook the feeling out of his head as Harry and Ron pulled Draco away. After all, if it hadn't been for them, Draco would surely be a Death Eater by now. And if it hadn't been for Draco, he himself would be one too.  
  
Goyle looked up as several girls at the Ravenclaw table gasped. More flowers. He shook his head. 'Someone must really like that girl,' he thought. Then his eyes fell on Draco, who had a sly grin on his face, and Goyle thought suddenly that he knew who it must be.  
  
Draco was pleased to see Ava sitting, not with the Hufflepuff 7th years, as she'd done all last week, but at the Ravenclaw table. Ron was prodding him. "Didn't you hear me? I said, why don't you ask her to Hogsmeade next weekend?" Ron repeated himself, when he had Draco's attention.  
  
"I think I will," he said quietly, still watching her as she chose a flower and put it in her hair. But it was Wednesday before he worked up the nerve. She was sitting in the library pouring over a huge book and writing furiously on a long piece of parchment.  
  
"Hi, Ava," he said coolly from behind her chair. He wasn't trying to startle her, he just didn't want her rushing out when he spoke to her. She jumped up and turned with her wand out, lowering it again when she recognized him. An amused smile was playing across his lips and she lost her breath for a moment, making her gasp for air.  
  
"You startled me!" she accused. He apologized, then held her chair for her. She sank back down, watching him warily as he sat opposite her.  
  
Draco watched her as she closed the book and put the parchment away. She was getting ready to leave again, he thought, but this time he wasn't going to let her get away with it. "I'm sorry if I upset you the last time we talked," he began gently. She paused in the process of putting away her quill and turned her eyes toward him, blissfully unaware of the pain it caused him to have to apologize.  
  
"I wasn't really prepared to talk about that. It wasn't very pleasant. Not like Neville bouncing down the road." Draco looked puzzled, then laughed.  
  
"THAT'S how they found out Neville was a wizard?" he asked incredulously.  
  
"He told me about it a few weeks ago. I think he was trying to cheer me up. It seems like that's what everyone is trying to do lately. Is it really that obvious?" she asked. Draco nodded solemnly, and she sighed.  
  
"If you do decide you want to talk, I'll always be around." He kicked himself for sounding so cliché, but she looked up at him, her eyes glistening. This would be the appropriate time to say goodbye, he knew, but he hadn't said what he'd come to say. He thought fast. "In the meantime, though, why don't you come with me to Hogsmeade this weekend? I'll show you all the good stores." He held his breath. She was still looking at him.  
  
"Well, all right. That'd be fun, I guess." She looked a little concerned now. "Technically, though, I'm still a first year. They might not let me go." She paused here, and lowered her voice. "I don't have any parents, you know, so I don't have anyone to sign the permission form. I grew up in an orphanage. Then the last few years I've bounced around from one foster family to another. I guess my mom died not long after I was born, and my dad was already gone by then." A haze seemed to have fallen over her eyes. "All I've really got of them is this locket, and it won't open." She pulled a locket out of an inside pocket of her robes. "The clasp was broken, too, by the time I got it." She was looking at it fondly.  
  
"I can fix it for you," Draco offered quietly. He was beginning to see why she was so sad. She handed it to him, and he muttered, "Reparo." There was a little chink of metal and it was fixed. He turned it over and his mouth fell open. Engraved on the back in tiny lettering was: To:  
A.G.W.  
From:  
T.M.R.  
With Love  
  
Draco closed his mouth with haste, as she was looking at him funny. "Won't open?" he asked, his voice croaking a bit, as he wondered whether there would be a picture of Voldemort inside. "Maybe we can fix that too," he mumbled.  
  
"Alohamora," he whispered, pointing his wand at the golden locket. It clicked open, and a small piece of metal fell out. There was only one picture inside, though it looked like there had once been two. Small amounts of paper were still stuck in there. It looked, too, like the woman in the first picture, obviously a witch, since she was moving, was holding someone's hand. Draco tried to prod her to make her move over, but it seemed she couldn't. The missing picture must have held the image of whoever's hand she was holding. He handed the locket back to Ava, who was examining the tiny golden key, which had fallen out of it.  
  
"That's a Gringott's key!" he exclaimed. "That will take you into your parents' bank vault." Her eyes were wide. It had never occurred to her that her parents might have left her anything. She'd been so embarrassed when Professor Dumbledore had himself purchased all her books and quills. Maybe now she'd be able to repay him! She turned her attention to the locket. It was obviously her mother. The woman had the same hair as she did. But this woman didn't have any of the cares and sorrows that shadowed Ava's face. She looked radiantly happy.  
  
Draco watched her as she stared at her mother's picture, feeling a little queasy in the stomach. He needed to talk to Harry and Ron. After a few moments, he coughed quietly into his hand, and she looked up.  
  
"Thank you so much for opening this for me." Her voice was almost husky and she sounded about to cry. Draco started to feel a little panicked. He needed to get out of here. If she started crying, he knew he'd end up staying to comfort her, and he couldn't afford that just now.  
  
"Any time," he said, forcing a brightness into his voice that surprised them both. "So I'll see you this weekend then?" he asked quickly.  
  
"Yeah, okay," she replied, suddenly grinning. She turned back to her mother's picture as he left. He broke into a run outside the library door and didn't stop until he reached the Gryffindor common room. He banged loudly on the door. Harry, Ron and Hermione had never offered to tell him the password and he had never asked.  
  
"What do you mean by this!" The fat lady hollered. He ignored her and banged again, hoping that it wasn't a young Gryffindor who came to the portrait hole. They were all pretty wary of him. He looked gratefully at Colin Creevy, who opened the portrait and stepped back for him to come in.  
  
"Thanks Colin," he said, but he stayed where he was, not willing to upset anyone by appearing in the common room unannounced. "I really need to talk to Harry and Ron, can you tell them?"  
  
"Sure," Colin said. He had been very friendly to Malfoy ever since last year when Draco had hexed Crabbe for breaking Dennis' camera. He ran up the steps to the dormitory and followed Harry back down. "See you, Draco," Colin said, shutting the portrait hole behind Harry.  
  
"Where's Ron?" Draco asked at once. He wasn't sure he wanted to explain this more than once.  
  
"Taking a walk with Hermione. Honestly, Draco, you'd better teach him that charm. He's starting to get desperate for ideas on how to ask her out." Harry chuckled for a moment, then looked over at Draco, who had not cracked a smile. "What's wrong?"  
  
Draco told him about the initials engraved on Ava's locket, and the Gringotts key. Harry listened in silence. "Should I tell her?" Draco asked finally. Harry shook his head.  
  
"Dumbledore surely knows. If he hasn't told her, I don't think we should either." Draco nodded. "We should probably keep a close eye on her, though. Especially outside the school." He looked back at Draco. "You did ask her, didn't you?" Finally Draco smiled.  
  
"Yeah, I kept my wits about me that much." They were out on the grounds now, and they spotted Ron and Hermione sitting beside the fountain in the courtyard. They were sitting pretty close to one another, and Harry and Draco decided not to interrupt them. "Looks like he's doing better than I am, flower charm or no," Draco joked as they headed back inside. 


	4. Chapter 3 Letters

**Draco vs. Venus: Round 1 Continued**

**Chapter 3 - Letters**

**October, 2007**  
  
Ava was putting forth her case to Professor Snape. "I'm seventeen years old. Even in the wizarding world that is considered an adult, is it not?" She was doing her best not to sound whiny, and it seemed to be working. Snape was at a loss.  
  
"Yes, that is old enough to classify you as an adult, however, your skills are not yet such that we can expect you to be able to - "  
  
She cut him off. "What could I possibly need to do in Hogsmeade that would require magic? I only want to shop, and have lunch." She said this forcefully and Snape stifled a sigh. He knew the Headmaster would allow it, so he agreed, making a mental note to go with the students into Hogsmeade.  
  
Ava came up the stairs late after potions to find most of Slytherin house on their way to dinner. She followed them into the great hall. With the first term nearly over and Christmas around the corner, most of the school had stopped looking up to see who she would eat with every time she came into the Great Hall. She set her jaw and headed to the Gryffindor table. She hadn't tried to sit here since that first day for 2 very good reasons: She really didn't want to upset Ginny anymore, and she didn't want to seem too forward to Draco, who, she noticed, was already watching her approach.  
  
Draco stood up and offered her his chair, nudging Neville to move down one. As she sat down, Draco took out his wand and flowers appeared in front of her. He shoved his wand back into his robes and looked around, like everyone else. She looked very uncomfortable as Draco sat down beside her, and she pushed the flowers off to the side. "Sorry about that," she said quietly. "I haven't been able to figure out who is doing it to ask them to stop."  
  
"Why would you want him to stop?" Draco asked. "I'm just glad to see you've made so many friends." He kept his voice even, and she smiled at him.  
  
"Thanks. I was worried you might be - Well anyway," she said, changing her mind, "I got Snape to sign my form, so I can go to Hogsmeade after all!"  
  
"Great!" he said. Harry was watching them from a few seats away, almost jealous of Draco's cool charm. He remembered with embarrassment his fiasco with Cho Chang two years ago. He saw Draco reach past Ava and take a flower from the vase, tucking it behind her ear. Ron, also noticing this, snorted into his hand. He could imagine how confident that would look to Ava, who didn't know that the flowers were from Draco in the first place.  
  
Ava sat with them at breakfast the next morning as well. Draco had decided the night before to teach Ron the spell. It was going to be difficult to get away with conjuring flowers when he was right beside her, so Ron did it for him. Harry had suggested it might be a good idea to let Hermione in on the whole thing, so that if she happened to see Ron doing it, she wouldn't get angry. So Draco had taught all three of them how, and now there were flowers appearing in Hermione's room as well, though she wasn't mentioning them to anyone. Owl post arrived with a rush of wings. Ava was the first at the table to receive anything, and everyone looked at her. "Wow, I wonder who could be writing me!" she exclaimed as she tore open the envelope.  
  
By now others were getting mail as well, but Draco kept his eyes on Ava. His parents had long since stopped sending him letters and gifts. She had turned very pale. When she finished reading, he asked, "Who is it from?" He kept his voice down, thinking she may not want everyone looking at her again.  
  
"Well, this is an official letter from the Orphanage, but of course they wouldn't use owl post. And this is..." she didn't finish, her eyes had wandered back to the page and she read it over again. She shoved both letters deep into her bag and didn't speak again, preferring to finish breakfast in silence. Draco knew better than to press her. He didn't want to go back to her leaving every time he entered a room.  
  
She jumped when he laid a hand on her shoulder and said it was almost time for class. They walked as far as they could together before heading off to their separate classrooms: Draco thinking entirely about the next day's trip to Hogsmeade, and Ava thinking about her letters. She sat through history of magic reading and rereading them.  
  
Dear Miss Riddel,  
This note is to inform you that the man we believe to be your father has contacted us as to your whereabouts. Now that you are no longer in the care of your foster parents, it is left for you to decide if you would like to be in contact with Mr. Tom M. Riddel. He was unable to give us instructions as to how he could be reached, but agreed to forward this note to you, believing that you would be able to send his messenger back with a return note should you care to do so.  
Cordially,  
Headmistress Rocher  
  
'Isn't that odd, though, that I'm supposed to decide to contact him, but they let him forward the letter,' Ava thought vaguely. She pushed the thought out of her mind, refolding the first letter and pulling out the second again.  
  
Avalyn Riddel,  
I have, as the orphanage requested, forwarded to you their letter. I hope that you will send me word by return owl. There are so many things I want to ask you. I am familiar with Hogwarts, of course, having gone to school there myself. Perhaps you could meet me in the forest tonight? I am aware that it is "Out-of-bounds" as Professor Dumbledore would surely say, but I can assure you that my magic is sufficient to protect us both. My owl will know where to find me.  
Awaiting your answer,  
Tomkins Maverick Riddel  
  
Ava sighed, thankful that Professor Binns paid so little attention to his students. She wondered if she dared to meet the man in the forest, but thought of her magic and decided that she did. After all, she could defend herself far better in the forest than out, as she had already proven. 'Yes,' she thought smugly to herself, 'I am perfectly capable of taking care of myself.'


	5. Chapter 4 Hogsmeade and Caught in the A...

**Draco vs. Venus: Round 1 Concluded**

**Chapter 4 - Hogsmeade and Caught in the Act**

**November, 2007**  
  
It was pouring rain as Ron and Hermione, Draco and Ava, and Harry set off down the street in Hogsmeade. They all had a lovely time looking around the various shops and buying all the magical candy they could fit in their pockets. Ava was happier than any of them had ever seen her. Draco, however, was restless. When he got the chance, he took her aside and asked if she'd like to go for a butter beer at the Three Broomsticks. She agreed, and he called over his shoulder to Harry that they were headed out and he'd see them later. Ron started to say he'd like a butter beer too, but Draco threw him a look full of daggers and he mumbled that he might want to do that later instead and turned to face a display of Filibuster Fireworks.  
  
"So, how have classes been?" Draco asked as they walked through the rain. His hair was plastered to his head and his cloak was thoroughly soaked, but he was glad to finally be able to talk with Ava.  
  
"Oh, fine. I'm turning out to be really good at Transfiguration," she replied. "No surprise," she added in an ironic tone of voice.  
  
"I'm surprised," Draco said, "Transfiguration is really hard, probably the hardest thing we have to learn." She didn't reply to this, and Draco hoped he hadn't said anything to upset her. She looked a little downcast again.  
  
They entered the Three Broomsticks and found a table to themselves. Draco ordered them drinks, and the bartender brought them over before Ava spoke again. Her voice was low. "That was my first magic. I transformed myself into a unicorn."  
  
Draco's mug hit the table a little hard as he looked at her. "No one can do that," he said flatly. "No one has ever been able to transform into a creature that magical!"  
  
She was nodding. "Dumbledore told me. He and Fudge were waiting when I got home."  
  
"But what made you do it? Mostly new wizards use magic when they're afraid of something." Draco, who'd been enjoying looking into Ava's eyes, was upset with himself again as she looked back to the table.  
  
She took a big breath and looked back up at him, borrowing the strength she saw in his eyes. "I WAS afraid. I'd taken a back way home through the woods after school. Three boys were following me, but I didn't notice them until one of them grabbed me from behind. It happened then. He had his arm around my neck and I couldn't breath, and the two others were running toward me, and I transformed." As she spoke tears were forming in her eyes and she paused to wipe them away.  
  
"I didn't know what I was, I just knew that the person running toward me wanted to hurt me. So I lowered my head to meet him." She said this last slowly. Her eyes were on the table again, and tears were streaming from her face into the mug she was still clutching. Draco nearly choked on his drink.  
  
"I didn't mean to," she added quickly, not looking up. "I ran around the forest for hours afterward. I wasn't even sure I could transform back, but I was so tired that finally I headed back to my foster parents' house. When I came out of the woods, I was human again." The tears were still streaming down her face, but finally she looked up at him and held his eyes. "I didn't mean to do it." She whispered.  
  
Draco put his hands around hers, which were still holding her mug. It was more than she'd expected. She had almost hoped that he'd run from her. It seemed to her that she deserved some kind of punishment for what had happened. As she sat, marveling at the softness of his hands against hers, she realized that she'd told him her story hoping that his reaction would be a punishment for her. Yet here he sat, looking at her with his sad, deep, gray eyes full of understanding.  
  
They walked back to the castle in silence, holding hands. Draco could hear Ron and Hermione bickering somewhere behind them on the path, and was thankful that they didn't catch up with them. He still couldn't quite believe what she'd just told him, and he was going to need some time to digest it. He walked her into the Great Hall with everyone else, but excused himself. He told her he needed to run down to his common room and get some books so he could go straight to the library after dinner. It was a pretty lame story, but she just nodded and sat silently with Harry and Ron and Hermione, who were still bickering.  
  
Draco didn't think he could make it all the way up to her room and back without getting caught, so instead he ran as fast as he could to that side of the castle and started counting windows. When he thought he had the right one, he pointed his wand at himself and whispered, "Wingardium Leviosa." He was a little nervous, having never tried it on himself before. He pulled open the window and climbed inside. The last time he'd left flowers in here had been nearly two months ago, now, but he could see that some remained. She'd hung them upside down from a shelf to dry them out.  
  
He decided, since it was almost Christmas, on poinsettias. In a few short minutes the room was full of blooming flowers in white, pink and red. He turned back to the window and was half way out when the door burst open, flooding light into the room. But it wasn't Ava who walked cautiously into the room, wand raised. It was Professor Snape.  
  
Snape blinked as he took in the scene. The room was bursting with flowers, and here was his favorite student climbing out the window. "Malfoy!" he barked. "Get down from there!" Draco, turning a bit green, climbed down from the sill, glad he hadn't already cast his levitation charm. He winced as Snape grabbed him by the collar and led him into the hallway, closing the door swiftly behind him.  
  
Draco wasn't quite sure why Snape was so upset, but got his answer a few moments later as Snape steered him into his own bare quarters and pushed him into a chair. "Do you have any idea who she is?" he said gently, shaking his head. Draco, surprised by his professor's tone of voice, nodded mutely. "What?" Snape whispered, his expression softening even further.  
  
"I saw the initials engraved on the back of her locket." Snape stared at Draco for a moment, then nodded. If the boy was going to involve himself, he realized, there was nothing he could do. Although why anyone would want to fall in love with a non-human was beyond him.  
  
"Get to dinner, Mr. Malfoy," he said quietly. Draco jumped up and hurried out before Snape could change his mind. He ran to the Slytherin dormitory, then back up to dinner, very much out of breath by the time he arrived.

Snape sat in his quarters throughout dinner, intending to think about Ava Riddel. But his mind wandered back to a missed Halloween ball, which only made him think about Muriel. She'd been gone the first few weeks of the summer, saying goodbye to her life in America. Then, after only a few days at Grimmauld Place, she'd unexpectedly gone back to America with Remus on Order business. The last three months without her had been very dull indeed. Luckily Tonks would be taking her place next weekend and she'd be back before Christmas.

_

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_

_AN: Alright this is the end of the Draco chapters for now, so it's time to **VOTE!** Who do you think wins the first round: Draco, or Venus? (Personally it looks to me like he's already caught, but hey, I'm a girl. What do I know about men?)_


	6. Chapter 5 Joining The Order

_AN: Yes, Ava is a non-human. You can't become an animagus without knowing it, and no wizard yet has turned into a magical creature when they DID learn to become an animagus. Thus she must be part unicorn. And Severus is not known for his tolerance of part humans. Also, a quick update on the voting -_

_Venus 7 - Draco 2 - Ron (who was mentioned in a review, though no vote was called on his part) 0. __No big surprise. And to ibogal: Yes, when the points are cumulative per person, there's really no way she can lose, now is there? VEG _

**

* * *

**

**Remus vs. Venus: Round 1**

**Chapter 5 - Joining The Order**

**December, 2007**  
  
"Avada Kedavra." Theda sat up with a start in time to see an arch of green light hit her sleeping husband. Someone laughed, and there were whispers all around her. For a moment, her mind jumped to the mysterious man who'd been following her to work and back each day. The room was in darkness again and she could just make out several shadowy forms surrounding her bed.  
  
"Imper - " the voice began, but she didn't give him a chance to finish. She remembered the children's books she'd been reading, the ones she'd posted all that fan fiction for. She vaulted out of bed and knocked into the speaker, sending him sprawling back toward her dresser, and she ran, in nothing more than panties, toward the front door. Something exploded behind her, but she didn't look back. Who were these freaks anyway, to come into her house pretending to be the fictional characters from a book?  
  
She threw the deadbolt and ran out of the house, her mind still reeling. Risking a glance backward she realized that they hadn't followed her out of the house. She hurried across the street, her feet burning on the frozen concrete, knowing that her neighbor would let her use the phone to call the police. She was stopped abruptly in the middle of the street as four figures in black cloaks appeared around her with several loud pops. She stifled a scream. The first man quickly wrapped her in his cloak, as the others ran toward the house.  
  
She caught a glimpse of his face in the light from her friend's lamppost. He looked only a few years older than she, and she knew where she'd seen him before. This was the man who'd been following her for the last four months.  
  
"They're gone," someone whispered from the house. The man laid a hand gently on her back and led her to the house. She held his cloak closed tightly, wondering who these people could be. Surely they weren't really - . Her thoughts trailed off to nothing as she looked back at the man.  
  
She stopped walking, pulling him up short. "Remus?" she asked quietly. His eyes widened in surprise as he nodded. "Then it's all true." The shock in her voice was evident as he stepped aside to allow her to reenter the house. His companions had dropped their hoods. One was still wearing a very British looking cap low over one eye. "Moody." Theda wasn't surprised when he nodded. "Sirius, and – and Tonks." Sirius looked as she expected. She'd never read a description of the woman in front of her, but she knew that Tonks was a shape-shifter of sorts. They both nodded warily.  
  
"And you are?" Moody growled.  
  
"Theda Rountree. But before you ask, I have no way to prove it." She saw Remus and Tonks exchange a small smile, but couldn't smile herself. "Is he - " She gestured toward the back of the house, knowing she didn't have to finish the question. She sank into a chair as they all looked uncomfortably at one another. Remus headed for the kitchen to busy himself making tea while Sirius tried to find the words to explain. But before he could begin, Theda held up a hand to silence him. Tonks sat down on the arm of the chair and put an arm around her.  
  
It wasn't until Remus returned with the tea that Theda felt ready to speak. She looked up as he handed it to her. "Thanks," she whispered. She watched him sit carefully on the couch across from her. He didn't meet her eyes. "You've been following me for months," she said finally. Remus looked up with a start, and Sirius, who'd been pacing the room, stopped mid- stride to look at her. "Was it the stories?" she asked.  
  
Remus nodded. "When Muriel arrived at Hogwarts, Dumbledore remembered reading the exact scenario on a fiction web site. It took us a while to find you, but we knew we had to have someone on hand. Chances were that Voldemort was watching those sites too." He spoke quietly, as if a louder voice might shatter the fragile calm in the room. She nodded. It was falling into place now. She'd written those fan fiction stories and posted them on the Internet, and they'd started coming true. She knew this instinctively, just as the stories had come to her instinctively. Just as the story she was currently living had come to her, although she had been afraid to write it down. They sat in silence again, sipping tea.  
  
"Excuse me," she said, standing suddenly. She headed for the back of the house as her tears started to fall. Removing a suitcase from her closet she began packing it with clothing, grabbing whatever she could reach. When it was full, she placed it in the hallway and returned to her room. She knelt by the bed.  
  
It looked so much like he was sleeping, but she didn't try to wake him. The fog had cleared from her mind, and she could recall clearly what curse he'd been hit with. She kissed him softly on the cheek and wiped the tears from her eyes. Then she silently dug out the album of wedding pictures that she hadn't looked at in years and shoved it into her suitcase as well.  
  
When she reappeared in the hallway, dragging the heavy suitcase behind her, Remus jumped up and took it from her gently. She looked at the others. "Let's go." she said simply.  
  
Tonks produced a port key from somewhere beneath her robes and Sirius slipped Theda a piece of paper. She looked at it and nodded once before placing a finger on the compact disc that Tonks was holding out. In moments they were standing in the kitchen of Sirius' home, looking at the shocked faces of Harry Potter and Ron Weasley.  
  
"I'll show you your room," Remus said, taking her elbow gently. They both nodded to the boys at the table before she let him lead her up the stairs. When he returned alone, he found that Sirius had already filled them in, and he was glad. He'd spent the last 4 months talking to people about that woman and wasn't sure he wanted to do it tonight. "I don't think she'll be down again tonight," he said, sinking into his usual chair at the table. Tonks headed to Hogwarts to tell Dumbledore what had happened, and Sirius sent Ron and Harry up to bed.  
  
"There was no way we could have saved him, Moony," Sirius said as he charmed two teacups through the air to land in front of each of them. Remus looked up guiltily. That hadn't been what he was thinking of.  
  
He nodded. "I know. But we should have told her sooner."  
  
"I think she already knew, mate. She recognized us. It was like she'd been expecting us to just pop up." Sirius said thoughtfully. "Dumbledore said that she wouldn't know what was going on, that she might not even believe us."  
  
"She'd be hard put not to believe us when she'd just watched her husband being murdered by magic." Remus said bitterly. Sirius looked at him in surprise. Remus, who had more reason than most to be bitter, hardly ever spoke that way. They finished their tea in silence and headed upstairs to their rooms, Sirius contemplating Theda's uncanny calmness and Remus just contemplating Theda.  
  
At two o'clock the next afternoon, Theda still hadn't emerged from her room, and Professor Dumbledore had arrived to speak with her. When Remus tapped softly on the door, she invited him in. She was dressed in the muggle clothing she'd brought along, her short-cropped hair falling wildly around her face. Neither of them smiled. "Professor Dumbledore is here. He was hoping you'd be up to talking with him." She nodded and followed him downstairs.  
  
They entered the kitchen to find that Muriel Deesia had joined Dumbledore and Sirius at the table, speaking in whispers. They fell silent when Theda appeared in the doorway and she managed a wan smile. "Professor Deesia, I understand you can help me with my pesky memory charm." Sirius and Remus exchanged a surprised glance, but Dumbledore only smiled conspiratorially.  
  
"Indeed, Muriel spent many years researching ways to painlessly break through memory charms, and has had great success," he answered for her. He then introduced the women as Theda sat down. Dumbledore fixed her with an odd, questioning look, and Theda decided that it would be best to explain everything she HAD been able to piece together before she started asking questions.  
  
"The story of everything that has happened since last night popped into my head not long after I finished the story about Draco and Ava. It was impossible for me to think it could be true, though, until Voldemort appeared in my house and - " she stopped abruptly as Remus brought her a plate of toast and sat down beside her.  
  
She stared at the toast for a moment. "When the story first occurred to me there were some pretty large gaps in it. All of them start out that way. It's only when I sit down to write them out that I really understand everything that happens. I never wrote this one out. I couldn't bear to write a story about Darren dying." No one spoke as Theda stared back down at the toast, then pushed it away, and with it the tears that were threatening to overwhelm her. "Your turn," she said suddenly, looking up at Dumbledore. He was no longer smiling.  
  
"Twenty years ago an American school of Witchcraft and Wizardry wiped the memory of a seven-year-old student and sent her home to live with her muggle parents. She'd spent only three years in school, where she'd been accepted early because of an unmatched prophetic gift. From your comment to Muriel a moment ago, I assume that you realize that you were that witch. Your teachers were frightened when your stories, which came true, became dark and violent. They believed wrongly that darkness and violence where occurring because you were writing about them. The truth was that your stories were warnings about what was to come." Dumbledore fell silent with a look at Muriel.  
  
"Professor Snape is working on the potion to help you reclaim the memories of the time you spent at the Salem Witches Institute. The potion will be ready by Christmas, as it takes only two days to age. You will need to drink it only once, but the memories will return slowly over the course of about a week. By New Year's you should remember everything." Muriel's tone was reassuring, and Theda looked at her gratefully as they all stood up. Muriel traveled by floo powder back to Hogwarts to finish grading homework so she would be free to come back for Christmas.  
  
Dumbledore was also preparing to leave when Theda spoke again. "Professor?" He turned and smiled kindly at her. "Whatever I can do to help the Order bring down Voldemort, I will do." Her voice was hard.  
  
"We had hoped you would feel that way, Theda," he said softly. He turned and disappeared in a spurt of green flame.

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_AN: This is the introductory chapter for Remus and the new character. Obviously by now you've realized that this was my juvenile attempt at writing myself into the story. Unfortunately (or perhaps fortunately for quality control) Theda took on a personality of her own, and from this point on, she and I are very little alike. This was one of my earliest stories, and I've since learned that the art of avoiding a Mary Sue is never to model a character after what you hope are your best qualities. As it progresses, it grates less, I promise!_

_Now, if you like, you can **vote** for Remus or for Venus. Next up, the much awaited Sirius and Muriel chapter._


	7. Chapter 6 Finally a Wand

**Sirius vs. Venus: Round 1**

**Chapter 6 - Finally a Wand **

**March, 2008**

"I hate potions." Theda was staring at her breakfast plate morosely, having just noticed that the potion she'd tried to brew last night really DID look just the color of a hardboiled egg yolk. She grimaced. If she'd done it right, it would have been canary yellow.

Remus suppressed a grin. Everyone who had ever tried to learn potions from Severus Snape had said that at one time or another. Muriel grinned openly at the comment. "No you don't. You hate the Potions Master. He'll be thrilled to hear that he hasn't lost his touch," she commented dryly.

"I don't hate him," Theda said unconvincingly. "He's just –" she stopped, remembering that Muriel was the man's best friend. "Exactly what I expected him to be," she finished lamely.

A deep laugh rang out from the doorway, where Sirius had just appeared. "Maybe it's about time you learned another type of magic anyway. Dumbledore just gave the okay on a trip to Diagon Alley to get you a wand of your own."

This announcement had the effect of cheering everyone up. Theda had not yet seen any part of the magical world except Grimmauld Place, which, in spite of Molly Weasley's best efforts, was still a rather dreary example. Of course, the dreariness had suited her mood just fine, but it would be good to get out for a bit. Three months was a long time.

"I had to promise that Remus and Mur and I would keep a close watch on you while we're out, but he agreed," he said, throwing a pointed look at Muriel. She raised an eyebrow before standing from the table. They dispersed to their respective rooms to get cloaks and gloves in silence.

As Theda dug through her drawers, she realized that she had been very careless with her packing. Of course she'd known she was going to England in the winter, but she'd been far too distracted to think of packing something like gloves. She sat down heavily on her bed, the cloak that Remus had leant her over her arm. Every little thing reminded her of home.

A sharp knock brought her out of her thoughts and she stood up, hastily wiping her eyes. "Just a minute," she called, throwing the cloak over her shoulders and looking around for her shoes. She'd gotten in the habit of beginning to write at dawn each day, and so she rarely bothered with shoes. By the time the others were awake for breakfast, the house was always warm enough for bare feet.

Remus pushed the door open. "Ready?"

"I've lost my damned shoes again," she said, agitated. It was amazing how quickly she could go from sad to angry. She looked up in chagrin. "Sorry." He just smiled, unfazed.

"Accio shoes," he said. The bathroom door flew open and the shoes in question came flying toward his head. He stepped behind the door and they hit it and fell with a thump.

"By this time tomorrow, I'll be able to do that myself," she commented quietly as she sat on the bed and pulled them onto her feet. She'd learned all those spells at a very young age, and now that her memory of that time had returned, she had great confidence in her ability to perform at least the more simple spells that everyone around her took for granted.

* * *

"Oh for Merlin's sake, Padfoot, act your age!" 

Remus looked sideways at Theda as they walked behind Muriel, who was scolding a very annoying and large black dog. He'd lifted his leg to pretend he was going to pee on her and only just escaped the heartfelt kick she'd aimed at him.

In the months since her discussion with Dumbledore, Theda had spoken very little, preferring to write her stories alone. The headmaster had probably warned her not to tell anyone what was in the stories until he'd read them. This was a point of contention among the rest of the Order, who would have loved to grill her on what she'd already written, which Dumbledore had refused to let any of them read. Remus, Sirius and Muriel knew she'd written something about Draco and Ava, but there was no indication what exactly it might be and the headmaster had sworn them all to secrecy.

She'd taken to writing first thing in the morning, and only coming down for breakfast when she heard Sirius' heavy footsteps on the stairs. He was consistently the last person awake, so this worked out pretty well. She'd spent the evenings studying potions with Severus, who treated her like a cross between a Hufflepuff first year and a wet-start firework in the fog, afraid to set her off, but unwilling to give up his usual countenance. Nothing he said ever seemed to actually anger her, though. She only nodded at his cutting insults and corrected the mistake he was pointing out. It had frustrated him to no end.

Remus was pulled out of his contemplation as they approached Gringotts. Sirius, who'd finally registered his animagus form (and paid the hefty fine for his years of law-breaking), morphed back to his human form as they climbed the stairs.

Theda had never seen goblins before, but she didn't appear to be startled by the wizened, cunning faces that surrounded them. When Sirius handed his key to one, she handed the goblin a key of her own, and the silence the four had shared as they'd walked changed in some fundamental way. They stared at her.

"Hermione helped me close the bank accounts I had at home and convert the money. There isn't much, but it's enough for a wand and some robes of my own."

Sirius narrowed his eyes before turning to follow the goblin. Muriel accompanied him. "Don't you think it's odd that she's so calm all the time? Shouldn't she be crying or angry or something?" he said, barely lowering his voice.

"Not everyone reacts to their pain by getting angry, Black," Muriel said, rolling her eyes. Sirius glared at her and climbed into the cart. When they sped away, a second goblin came with a cart for Remus and Theda.

"Does he honestly think I didn't hear him?" she whispered as Remus sat down beside her.

"Sirius has never been what you'd call tactful. If you'd ever met his mum, you'd understand that he really turned out remarkably well, all things considered." If he was hoping to lighten her mood it didn't work. Theda only shook her head as the cart began to roll.

Ahead of them an angry shout echoed through the cavern, and Remus prodded the goblin. "Steer us toward that, please," he said, pointing in the direction Sirius and Mur had taken. They skidded to a stop behind the empty cart and Remus ran for his friend's vault, where there were still raised voices.

"– only because you never gave me the chance!" Galleons were scattered everywhere. Sirius was standing in the farthest corner of the vault, having obviously tripped over the usually neat piles of coins.

"This isn't about YOU, you conceited PRAT!" Muriel's wand was shooting red sparks, though she didn't appear to have actually hexed him yet. "He asked me not to let you go over there. Besides, you would just have said something insulting about Severus and – "

"So this is about Snivellous again?" Sirius spat, cutting her off.

Remus lunged for Muriel's wand arm too late. "REDUCTO," she'd shouted, her wand aimed squarely at Sirius' head. An amusingly high-pitched snarl was emitted an instant later as Sirius' head shrank to half its original size. Remus let go of Mur's arm immediately, shaking his head and trying not to laugh.

Behind him he heard Theda whisper, "Beetleguise, Beetleguise, Beetleguise." He turned to look at her quizzically, wondering if that was something she'd learned at the Salem witches institute. She only shook her head again.

In front of him he heard Muriel begin what he knew would be an impressive dressing-down of his best mate. "Not so big-headed now, are you Black? Honestly, you seem to think that everything I say has some hidden meaning. All I was trying to say was I was sorry we never got a chance to thank Regalus properly!" Here she paused and lowered her voice, though she didn't soften it any. "I was just sad that he's gone, that's all."

The expression on Sirius' face was unreadable, probably because it was so small. Muriel ran out of the vault, her face bright red and contorted into an angry scowl.

"Help me out, Moony," Sirius said, when he was sure she was gone. His voice approximated the whine of a dragonfly, and Remus couldn't contain his laughter as he enlarged Sirius' head to the correct size. "Damn her," Sirius mumbled as he scooped up a handful of galleons and followed Remus and Theda back out of the vault. One cart and goblin were gone. The remaining goblin looked politely amused, which didn't improve Sirius' mood.

Sirius, Remus and Theda spent over an hour in Ollivander's, and at least as long in Madam Malkin's. Theda tried to drag them into the bookstore, but was assured that Harry's first year books would be enough to keep her busy for at least a few months. Theda fingered her wand idly while Remus carried her new robes. She'd bought only one set in black, determined to look as little like her Potions professor as she could.

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_AN: Okay, I'll accept votes for either Sirius or Remus against Venus this time, as they both had a part in this chapter. Thanks to everyone who's reviewed thus far. _


	8. Chapter 7 Life at a Price

_AN: Alright, you've all noticed that this jumps around a bit. I'll grant that this is a departure from my usual writing style, and some reviewers like it and others don't. Just remember that in real life MONTHS go by when nothing noteworthy happens. Take a look at anyone's diary, and you'll agree. As a result, I'll reiterate that the dates are VERY important - several years will pass. Hope that clears everything up. Now back to Draco and Ava's segment of this soap opera._

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**Draco vs. Venus: Round 2**

**Chapter 7 - Life At A Price?**

**May, 2008**  
  
Two more Quidditch games came and went at Hogwarts. It was understood, by this time, that Draco and Ava were a serious item. Flowers had stopped appearing at the table when she sat down, but still graced her room every few days. She didn't mention these to Draco, though. She didn't want to upset him. She also didn't mention the letters she kept receiving from her father. She was still in shock over it. All her life she'd thought she had no family. Finding that she did was more like magic than anything to her, and she saved her letters to read during history of magic, preferring to be alone to think over everything he told her.  
  
At the final Quidditch game of the year, Gryffindor vs. Slytherin, Ava stopped outside the pitch. She really wanted to sit with Hermione, but she could see her walking with Ginny up ahead. Ginny had never really warmed up to her, and she didn't want to make her uncomfortable. 'Besides,' she thought to herself, 'I'll be rooting for Draco, so I should sit with his house.' She'd never really had much to do with the Slytherin house. Goyle was always nice to her, but of course, he was a beater on the Slytherin team, so she couldn't sit with him. In the end she sat beside Pansy Parkinson, a rather spindly looking girl in the same year as Draco. It was the only seat that remained in the top box. Pansy had always been interested in the flowers that appeared wherever Ava went, and they'd had several pleasant conversations between classes in the hallway. Ava hadn't talked to Pansy for quite some time, however. Right around the time the flowers had stopped appearing at meals, Pansy had stopped acknowledging her in the halls. 'That's when Draco and I really started seeing each other, too,' she thought as she looked over at Pansy, who was purposely ignoring her.  
  
It was a very exciting game. Gryffindor was way ahead in house points. If Slytherin wanted to win the House cup, they would have to have a very high-scoring game. All eyes were on the seekers as Draco blocked Harry from reaching the snitch again and again. Ron had some spectacular saves, but the Slytherin point total was mounting higher. They needed to win by at least 300 points, which meant Malfoy was under orders not to catch the Snitch until they were at least 150 points ahead. All Gryffindor's best chasers had left school the year before. They're replacements were good players, but not used to Slytherin's rough tactics.  
  
After almost 5 hours of playing, as the sun was beginning to go down, Draco and Harry both caught sight of the snitch. They shot after it, and Draco knew as he fell behind that he wouldn't be able to stop Harry unless he took the snitch himself. Slytherin was ahead by only 120 points. He could squeeze out a win for the match, but not for the house cup. At the last minute he bumped Harry hard. Harry's hand closed around one of the snitch's wings, rather than the snitch itself, which Draco, putting on a spurt of speed, already had in his hand. It had been a fantastic game. As the players landed, Slytherin victorious, but disgruntled, Harry and Draco shook hands, both smiling, and went to their locker rooms.  
  
There was a huge explosion from the Slytherin locker room. Ava heard it as she left the pitch. Teachers were running toward the sound, and most of the students had stopped moving and turned back, not sure what was happening. Hagrid herded them back toward the castle and into the main hall. Ava sat with Harry, Ron and Hermione, all of whom kept glancing toward the open doors, hoping to see Draco. Finally, Ava stood up and pushed back her chair. "I'm going to the hospital wing," she announced, and hurried out.  
  
The hospital ward was in chaos. Draco lay in the bed nearest the door, bleeding from huge gashes while Madam Pomfrey, casting baleful looks toward the back of the room, gave him a potion, and cast the spells that would knit the skin back together.  
  
Behind them several people were shouting at once. She could plainly see that Crabbe and another of his teammates were without their wands and screaming at Professor Snape. Snape had his wand pointed in their direction, preventing them from moving. In the end he had to stun them both. They fell to the floor just as Professor Dumbledore arrived.  
  
Ava stood, unnoticed, behind Madam Pomfrey, who was now giving Draco a blood-replenishing potion. He was still unconscious and she had to hold his nose and force the potion down his throat. She watched Professor Dumbledore and Professor Snape lift Crabbe and the other Slytherin boy into beds and draw their curtains. She heard Snape mutter something and realized that he must be restraining them. "What happened, Severus?" Professor Dumbledore sounded tired as his voice carried through the curtains.  
  
"It appears that the rest of the Slytherin team thought Malfoy should not have caught the snitch so quickly. " Snape answered, his voice dull.  
  
'All this over a dumb game of Quidditch?' Ava thought. But her thoughts were interrupted.  
  
"Do you think, Severus, that that is all it was?"  
  
"No, of course not. Crabbe is a known Death Eater. Malfoy told Black about him late last year, and has been working to keep him from convincing anyone else in Slytherin to join the Dark Lord." Ava shivered. She didn't know that Draco had been openly opposing Lord Voldemort, whom she'd heard about from several people in Hufflepuff. Snape continued, "I'm sure Lucius authorized the attack, I just don't know why. Just to punish him? It hardly seems likely." The Professors were silent, and Ava turned her eyes back to Draco. Madam Pomfrey had joined Dumbledore and Snape. She was telling them that there wasn't much more she was going to be able to do. He had lost a great deal of blood, and the potion might not work quickly enough to save him.  
  
Ava felt her throat constrict. She'd been standing here assuming that Madam Pomfrey's magic could do anything. Her vision blurred and she lurched toward Draco's bed. He was so pale. She could hear their voices still from the other side of the curtain, but they seemed like faint whispers. Her heartbeat in her ears soon drowned them out. For the second time in her life, she acted on sheer instinct.  
  
She bit her wrist, hard, then grabbed the chalice that sat on the bedside table, the one Madam Pomfrey had brought potion in earlier. Her blood rushed out, silver instead of red, and thick. She remembered, as the cup filled, what Hagrid had told her about unicorn blood being able to save someone, no matter how close he was to death.  
  
When the cup was full, she held her wrist tightly against her side and put the cup to Draco's lips. He drank, and she let out a gasp of relief. She heard the curtains behind her whip aside in response to her noise, but didn't have time to turn before she fell, unconscious, to the floor.  
  
She awoke hours later to the whispering of several teachers. When she opened her eyes, they were crowded around her. She tried to sit up, but Madam Pomfrey reached out a hand and held her in the bed. "Is he alright," she asked weakly? They looked at one another.  
  
"We don't know," Professor Dumbledore answered softly. "He has not yet awoken. Are you aware, Miss Riddel, of the properties of unicorn blood?"  
  
"Hagrid said it would keep someone alive no matter what," she said. Then added, "but that it is a horrible thing to kill a unicorn and - " That was as far as she got. Professor Snape came into focus above her, his eyes flashing.  
  
"And," he finished for her, "That from the moment the blood touches your lips you will live a half life, a broken life. Or do you not recall THAT part of the lesson, Miss Riddel?" She closed her eyes. She had indeed recalled that part of the lesson. How could she explain to them that this was different? They were whispering all around her again.  
  
"I thought," she said, suddenly, opening her eyes again and startling them all, "that unicorn blood freely given would have only the positive effect, not the negative." They were staring at her. Professor Snape now looked amused, and she blinked, confusedly.  
  
"And right you were, my dear," Madam Pomfrey said cheerfully. She blinked again. She didn't understand. They'd all been angry with her only a moment before. But then she opened her eyes a little wider. They weren't standing in the same places as before. Professor McGonagal was gone, and the others were dressed differently.  
  
"How long was I asleep?" she asked groggily.  
  
"Three days." The answer came, from somewhere outside the circle of teachers. The professors all smiled conspiratorially at one another and dispersed as Draco Malfoy came into view. She sat up a bit. "And I've been up and around for two of them, thanks to you." He was grinning at her from the other side of a large bouquet of roses.  
  
Ava stayed in the hospital wing for several weeks. It turned out that unicorns have thick, slow-moving blood and not a lot of it. Losing a cupful was nearly enough to kill her. Nearly. Harry, Ron, Hermione and Draco were all taking their N.E.W.T.S., but Draco found time to visit between tests. She was finally allowed to leave her bed on the last day of exams, and Harry, Ron and Draco found her sitting out by the lake, reading a pile of letters that she'd been saving to reread when she had some spare time. Hermione was still looking over her test papers and trying to decide how well she'd done.  
  
"What's all this," Draco asked as they approached.  
  
"Oh," she said happily, "Letters from my father! Didn't I tell you that the orphanage wrote early this term to say that they had heard from him?" She chattered on, oblivious to their horrified looks. "I've been writing him ever since. I even met him once, in the forest." Here she stopped, as Draco had snatched the pile of letters. He whipped through them, horror on his face.  
  
Ava was on her feet now, looking at each boy's face. "What is it? I thought you'd be happy for me. I finally have someplace to go for the summer instead of that awful orphanage!" Draco looked at her incredulously.  
  
"STAY WITH HIM? ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR MIND? he shouted, "YOU CAN'T STAY WITH TOM RIDDLE!," he shook the papers at her. " HE'S LORD VOLDEMORT!" Ava dropped the letter she'd been holding and backed away from them, and it. Then she ran, with all the speed she could muster, into the forest. She transformed as soon as she was out of sight and she ran and ran.


	9. Chapter 8 Meeting Mafloy Sr

_AN: Still a short chapter, I know, but at least now all the text is there! Sorry - I don't know what happened. Hope it makes better sense this way._

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**Draco vs. Venus: Round 2**

**Chapter 8 - Meeting Malfoy Sr.**

**June, 2008**  
  
Draco, shaking with rage that he directed entirely at himself, was trying to explain what happened to an equally furious Professor Snape. Harry and Ron stood by with their heads down, knowing they were next. Technically they weren't students of the school anymore, but the fact remained that Professor Snape was right. The other teachers were out combing the forest, and in great peril doing so. It was entirely possible that Lord Voldemort had already found her, and Draco knew that it would be his fault if he had. "Get out of my office," Snape finally hissed at them in frustration, "Get out of this school." He didn't want to hear their explanations and he wasn't in any mood to give one, either.  
  
They had made their plans of course. Harry and Draco were moving in with Sirius and beginning Auror's training. Ron had bought a small house near the Burrow, and as large a diamond ring as he could, knowing that Hermione's parents would be pleased with it, even if she thought it was a silly muggle tradition.  
  
They headed for Hogsmeade, knowing they'd already missed the train. They managed to get a room above the Hogshead, and took their things up there before parking themselves at a table in the bar. They hardly spoke. No one else in the place seemed to be talking either. The bartender, always silent, was staring at a witch in light gray robes who was wearing a strange wrap around her head. A few seats away an unsavory man in dark brown sat looking at them, his eyes shining from under a hood, his face unseen.  
  
Draco pushed back his chair. "I'm going for a walk," he said sullenly. The town was deserted now that school was over, and he really did want to be alone. Harry and Ron gazed into their drinks, hardly noticing that first the unsavory wizard, and then the gray witch headed outside as well.  
  
There was a dull thud, and Ava heard it as she ran to catch up, pulling out her wand. Lucius Malfoy was approaching the immobile form of his son in the alley behind the Hogshead. The sun was fading. He stopped short as a petite figure stepped over Draco to face him. A low, female voice spoke from behind the gray cloth. "You are outside your master's will, Lucius." Ava prayed she'd guessed right about the man's identity. Triumph flashed in her eyes as he pulled back his cowl. He certainly looked a great deal like Draco.  
  
His face was twisted in a nasty sneer. "You have no authority to say so, Miss Riddle," he replied in a dangerous voice.  
  
"I'll say what I want and you'll do as I say," she replied, hoping that she sounded braver than she felt, "or face my father's wrath." At this Mr. Malfoy blanched. He had heard about the scene at the school.  
  
He felt the air leaving his lungs through his teeth, and it was her turn to sneer. "I wouldn't mention this to him, if I were you. After all, I believe it would be you who would be punished for incurring my displeasure." She said it all in as cold a voice as she could muster, doing her best to sound like the Slytherins she'd heard gossiping in the library. Malfoy looked at her a moment longer, his eyes betraying nothing. Then he disapparated with a pop.  
  
She fell to her knees, suddenly sobbing, beside Draco who still lay face down on the street. Harry and Ron were walking slowly toward her, unsure of her after what they'd just overheard. They helped her take him upstairs to the room they shared. She covered him with the blanket, then turned to go. "I'd rather he didn't know about this," she said as she paused at the door. "It would be hard on him to know I was here." Harry and Ron nodded mutely. She disappeared from the doorway.  
  
Ron followed her into the hall. "Where will you go?" he asked thickly.  
  
"Back to the school. I can't very well help you fight Lord Voldemort with only one year of training, can I." It was a statement rather than a question. She sounded bereft of emotion. Ron watched as she headed back down the stairs.

AN: Another spot for voting. Who wins this round?


	10. Chapter 9 Anniversary

_AN: In honor of Hydra-Star, who says my last chapter was too short, I am posting this one early. Watch that jump in time - it's been a while since the last chapter took place. And like I said in an e-mail, life is like that sometimes. It's often the case that nothing noteworthy happens for six months, but then, suddenly, there's something to write about again - see ANYONE'S diary if you don't believe me._

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**Remus vs. Venus: Round 2**

**Chapter 9 - Anniversary**

**December, 2008**

Remus pushed open the door to Theda's room and looked toward the writing desk. In the last year he'd brought her tea nearly every day, and every day he found her sitting at the desk, bent over a piece of parchment or leaning back in the chair with an old spell book. Today, however, she was still in bed. He shook his head and retreated down to the kitchen, chuckling softly. Sirius looked up when he entered, carrying the full tray. "I knew she couldn't work like that forever. She's still asleep," he said in answer to Sirius' questioning eyes. A flicker of understanding passed over his friend's face. "What?" he asked immediately.

Sirius answered softly. "It's almost Christmas, Moony." Sirius had been watching Remus carefully. They were best mates, after all. He was almost sure that Remus was interested in Theda. The biggest indication was that Tonks had expressed an interest in Remus, and he'd gently assured her that it wasn't for the best. He knew his friend had always been fond of Tonks, and two years ago Remus would have been happy for the chance to date her. But Remus never mentioned having any feelings for Theda, so Sirius hadn't brought it up. Now, however, he wasn't surprised by his friend's reaction.

Remus passed a hand over his eyes and sat down hard. "I'd nearly forgotten," he mumbled, not looking up.

They passed the day decorating Headquarters for Christmas. The Weasleys arrived for lunch, and Harry, Ron and Hermione showed up just after dinner. It was their last year at Hogwarts, and now that they were of age they were anxious to hear about the goings on with the Order. Sirius filled them in as best he could.

"Where's Theda?" Hermione asked suddenly. She had spent two weeks at Grimmauld place over the summer, and during that time she and Theda had become close. There were, after all, only eleven years difference in their ages, and Hermione had never had an aunt. Everyone fell silent at the question, and most eyes turned to Remus, who didn't quite know what to say.

Hermione took one look around the room and then headed for the stairs. She knocked softly. "Come in," she heard faintly from the other side of the door. Theda was sitting cross-legged on her bed, still in her pajamas. She smiled a bit when she saw Hermione. "I didn't hear you arrive," she said quietly. "Come in," she said again. Hermione closed the door behind her and came over to the bed, looking at the huge book that was propped open on a pillow in front of her friend. Theda's puffy eyes followed her gaze. "Didn't I ever show you?" Her voice was still quiet, and she patted the bed beside her. They looked through the wedding album for some time, Hermione exclaiming about each picture.

"Your hair was so long!" she said, looking up at Theda's shaggy hair.

"Yes, and I miss it desperately." She ran a hand through her hair.

"Oh, but I can fix that!" Hermione pulled out her wand and pointed it at Theda's head. Theda didn't flinch. A few weeks with Hermione was enough to convince anyone that she knew what she was doing. A moment later they were both standing. "Tell me when to quit," Hermione said, giggling a bit as Theda's hair snaked toward her waist. They let it grow a bit longer, then cut it off straight. "Uh oh, it's two different colors!"

Theda pulled her hair around to look at it, remembering that it had been only a year ago when she stopped dyeing it. Hermione was thinking. She quickly muttered another spell, and then gasped. "Oh, I didn't mean to do that!" Theda's hair was now all one color, but it was neither the red she had dyed it, nor the light brown she remembered, but a deep brown that surprised them both.

"It's alright," Theda said quickly, thinking back to the week she'd spent last Christmas remembering her childhood. "When I left that school in America they changed my appearance in case anyone tried to find me. They must have changed my hair color. Your spell worked perfectly," she assured her, heading toward the mirror. Hermione smiled as she watched Theda looking at her reflection. Then she quickly went to the wardrobe and pulled out a plain black set of robes.

"Here," she said, tossing them to Theda as she turned. "We've got an impromptu party going on downstairs. The guys really did a nice job decorating the house."

By the time they went downstairs Professor Snape, Professor Deesia and Draco Malfoy had arrived, and the party was in full swing. Theda went quickly to Muriel and steered her away from Severus. A story had popped into her head the moment her eyes had fallen on Draco. "Has Dumbledore mentioned anything to you about a set of amulets?" Muriel was used to these sorts of questions appearing out of the blue, and nodded. Sometimes this was the only conversation you could get out of the girl.

"Yes, Sirius and I will be leaving right after Christmas. Remus is going to cover my classes until I can get back." Theda was surprised that their trip was coming up so soon. Stories usually occurred to her earlier than this. She remembered guiltily that she had spent the day in bed instead of writing.

"You need to take Draco along," she said. "His father owns the sister amulet and Draco knows how to use it."

Muriel nodded again. She could feel Remus staring at them from the other room. "I'll speak with Dumbledore," she replied, smiling. They laughed as Ron and Hermione danced enthusiastically passed them, and made their way over to Sirius and Remus.

"The decorations look wonderful," Theda said politely, remembering what Hermione had told her about their hard work.

Sirius grinned impishly. "Remus picked them all out," he said.

When Muriel and Remus had gone back to Hogwarts to plan lessons for the start of next term and the students had retreated to an upstairs room to talk, Theda sat down in the kitchen, watching Sirius clean up. When all the pans were sloppily washing themselves, Sirius turned and joined her, smiling as she winced against the soapy water that occasionally splashed all the way to the table. "Never was very good at that sort of thing," he said.

He wondered briefly why she was sitting here waiting for him. She looked uncomfortable. "Sirius, you've known Remus a long time." She paused.

"Yes," he answered warily.

"Would you say that he's a patient person?"

Sirius narrowed his eyes a bit, not sure what she was getting at. "Yes. I'd say living with James and me for seven years and not killing either of us would indicate that he's a patient person." Theda smiled wanly at this. "Why?" he asked.

She stood slowly and headed for the door as though she hadn't heard him, but turned before she reached the hall. "One year isn't long enough, Sirius," she whispered. As he listened to her footsteps retreating up the stairs, he shook his head in disbelief. She knew, then, how Remus felt.

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_AN: Alright, VOTE! Who do you think wins Remus' second round?_


	11. Chapter 10 The Malfoy Family Heirloom

_AN: Alright, after more than one request, I'm going to try to further explain the nature of the voting. Think of "men" as a general catagory of people. -Most of my readers seem to be female, but if you aren't, please don't take offense at this, because it is all in good fun and not meant to be cruel.- Men in general tend to shy away from commitment. I'm not talking about committing to a five year car payment, or even a thirty year mortgage. They seem to be able to handle those just fine. I'm speaking specifically about commitment stemming from love. Falling in love is often seen as a weakness or something. Listen once through to the song "Another One Bites The Dust," which has been traditionally requested by the best man at every wedding ever since it was written, and you'll see what I mean. The battle today is Sirius vs. Venus, which is the goddess of Love. The idea is that he's resisting falling in love. How well is he doing? Or has he already lost? THAT's what we're voting on. I hope this clears things up. I've had a lot of fun setting this story up for this purpose, and it won't be as much fun to read if it still doesn't make sense to everyone. Let me know - I hope that helps. _

_Brandy_

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**Sirius vs. Venus: Round 2**

**Chapter 10 - The Malfoy Family Heirloom**

**December, 2008**

"That looks like more than you'll need for just this trip," Sirius observed dryly, standing in the open doorway to Muriel's room in Grimmauld Place. Only an hour before, they had been summoned to Professor Dumbledore's office for a very early meeting and given a new mission for the Order of the Phoenix. Dumbledore had said it wouldn't take long, and they should travel light, but it looked to Sirius like the short brunette was packing everything in sight.  
  
She was. Items flew out of drawers, following the commands of her wand. Muriel could hear the irritation in Sirius' voice, and feel it as if it were taking up all the space in the room between them. "You were there when Professor Dumbledore asked me to come and stay at Hogwarts once this mission is complete. He's worried about retaliation. If we manage to keep Lucius from getting that amulet, Riddle is bound to be furious. We'll need all the help we can get to protect the students and the school." Muriel knew he didn't believe that she was leaving just because of that. She had other reasons as well, though not what he thought. She turned away, rummaging through her clothes.  
  
"Sirius, it's almost Christmas. Can we please not have an argument?" She didn't turn to speak. Since he had returned from the veil, Sirius had been cross with everyone, except Harry and Remus. When neither of them was around, it seemed that he radiated anger like a white coal radiates heat. More than once Muriel had found herself avoiding his company because he made her so uncomfortable.  
  
Now, as she gathered up her parchment and quill from the desk, she felt a surge of anger from him, and heard his footsteps clicking smartly back down the stairs. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath before depositing the parchment haphazardly in her trunk. It was too early in the morning for this. She finished packing and charmed her trunks to follow her downstairs. As she passed the kitchen door on her way to the fireplace, she could see Sirius sitting with Remus, who looked dejected. She marveled for the hundredth time how Sirius could sit there with such a look of contentment and sympathy on his face when Remus was around. When he was with her, his face reminded her of the bright red wrappers on Filibuster fireworks, and held the same promise of a spectacular explosion.  
  
She felt sadness from Remus, and almost stopped to comfort him, but in that moment Sirius looked up and caught her eye. He mouthed, 'Theda,' and she nodded to show she understood. She wasn't going to be able to offer him much comfort for that.  
  
When she arrived in her new quarters at Hogwarts, she immediately lit a fire in the grate. No one had stayed in these quarters for quite some time, since she had spent her first year and a half as a professor living at Grimmauld Place. She noticed, however, that it was immaculate. The house elves had gone to great lengths to make sure it didn't smell musty. She unpacked alone, thinking angrily about Sirius. She cursed herself for thinking he would want her back after all that had happened. He'd been furious when he'd first awoken to find her in his house, but then she had thought he was coming around. She sat down hard on the bed, deciding that it was about time she had a good cry.  
  
When Severus pushed the door open, Muriel was sitting on her bed, her arms wrapped tightly around her knees. How often had he seen her sitting like that? He suppressed a sigh.  
  
"Alright, Mur?" he asked quietly. She didn't look up. "I thought I felt an extra bit of anger in the castle and figured you must have arrived."  
  
He heard her sputter. When she looked up, her face was red and tear- stained. "Really? I would have gone looking for Black if I felt any extra anger around!" She said harshly.  
  
"You know me better than to think I'd go looking for Black," Severus said mildly, permitting himself a small smile. Muriel shook her head before placing it firmly back between her knees.  
  
Severus crossed the room and put an arm around her. He let her cry until she was finished, which wasn't long. When she stood and went back to unpacking, he helped her silently, wondering what the conceited prat had said to her this time. He hadn't changed his habit of veiling his mind from her, and didn't worry about her hearing the insults and abuse that he was mentally slinging at Sirius Black.  
  
Muriel had the house elves bring up lunch and they sat on her bed, eating, but not talking. Finally, Severus looked up. "There's going to be a get- together at Headquarters tonight. Draco and I were planning to attend. I hope you won't let whatever happened today stop you from coming with us." He knew she didn't want to talk about it. If she had, she would have told him already. But he didn't want her sitting here by herself tonight either.  
  
"Don't be ridiculous," she said immediately. "Of course I'll go." Severus smirked a bit. Muriel didn't stay down long.

When the party was over, she helped Remus pack a few things to take back to the castle. He was going to be looking after her class for her while she and Sirius were away. They went over the lessons she had planned. Then she excused herself and made her way to the Headmaster's office.  
  
"Ah, Muriel," Dumbledore said quietly, looking at her over his half-moon spectacles. "I thought there would be something you wanted to discuss." A flicker of amusement crossed his face, and she realized that he probably knew something about her tiff with Sirius. She fought back the angry scowl that was creeping over her face.  
  
"I'm impressed, Headmaster, that you would know of Theda's new prophesy so quickly. I had understood that she hadn't yet written it down." Her voice was coldly polite, and the knowing smile on the old professor's face fell away. 'Good,' she thought scathingly, 'he deserved that for thinking I would want to talk to HIM about Sirius.'  
  
He removed his spectacles as she continued, almost missing her point as he remembered the willful student who had once shackled her best friend to a Hufflepuff girl to punish them for kissing.  
  
"So Theda believes that we should take Draco along, since he knows how to use his father's amulet, and likely knows what the sister amulet looks like." Muriel finished. Draco was staying at Order Headquarters for the holiday with Harry, Ron and Hermione. They would be leaving only a few days after Christmas, and Muriel knew that if Dumbledore agreed to this, she would probably be sent back to Grimmauld place tonight to tell him, so she thought fast.  
  
"I'll send Remus back tonight to let him know, if you would like," she added hastily. Dumbledore looked at her for a moment before nodding, and Muriel let out a sigh of relief. She wouldn't have to face Sirius again tonight. 


	12. Chapter 11 The Search Begins

**Sirius vs. Venus: Round 2**

**Chapter 11 - The Search Begins**

**December, 2008**

She arrived at Grimmauld place dressed warmly, an extra cloak in her bag, which was slung heavily across her back. She opened the front door and found herself face to face with Sirius Black, who'd been about to open the door to look for her. She was late, but she wasn't about to apologize to him for it.  
  
He stepped aside silently to let her in. "Where's Draco?" she said over her shoulder as she made her way to the fireplace. Sirius followed her. Draco was already waiting by the fire, and she would find him soon enough. Muriel gritted her teeth against the tension in the atmosphere, and smiled at Draco.  
  
"Sorry to keep you waiting," she said, not turning to include Sirius. "Shall we?" The young blond nodded curtly, and raised an eyebrow at them before turning and stepping into the fire.  
  
The cabin they found themselves in was filthy. Particleboard covered the windows, but the door was swinging on one hinge, and it was freezing. Sirius tossed his bag down in front of the fireplace and inspected it for cracks. It wouldn't do to light a fire and have the place burn down because the hearth wasn't sound. Satisfied, he headed outside to gather wood as Draco checked out the rest of the place. Muriel began setting up anti-apparation spells and anti-muggle wards.  
  
When the fire was roaring and Sirius and Draco sat eating broth on the floor before it, Muriel came back inside, finally sure that she'd done everything possible to make the place invisible. She fixed the door on her way in and closed it tightly.  
  
"You've got to be freezing," Sirius said, handing her a bowl of broth.  
  
"Thanks." She whispered, trying to keep her teeth from chattering. She looked around. The cabin had only two rooms, and no lavatory at all. Well, Remus had warned her that might be the case. She stuck her head in the second room. One bed. Lovely.  
  
Muriel sat down near the men by the fire, sipping the broth silently. When she'd finished, she fished her cloak out of her bag and lay down near the fire. Sirius and Draco exchanged a glance.  
  
"Professor, why don't you use the bed, we'll be alright out here," Draco said, tentatively.  
  
"Draco, you're about to finish school, so there is no need to call me Professor. You can call me Mur, like the rest of my friends. It will be much more convenient if you should need to call me for help in the next few weeks." She sat up, an amused expression on her face. "And when is the last time you slept on the ground?"  
  
Draco seemed to turn a bit orange in the firelight, and Muriel smiled. "That's what I thought. You'll need your rest, and you won't get any out here. I'm used to it, I'll be fine." She thought back on the time she'd spent tracking Dark Wizards in America. Yes, she had spent plenty of time sleeping on the ground, sometimes with less than a hovel and a cloak to protect her.  
  
Draco nodded and left the room. He had a shrewd idea that perhaps she just wanted to be alone with Sirius. An image of them together in the hospital wing flickered through his mind, Sirius pushing hair out of Muriel's face gently as she slept. He smiled to himself and got ready for bed. It wasn't long before his breathing could be heard, slow and even from the other side of the cabin. Muriel fell asleep quickly as well.  
  
Sirius sat by the fire, occasionally throwing on another log. He pulled a small green box out of his pocket and opened it, watching the firelight dance and reflect off the ring it held. Finally he, too, fell into a restless sleep on the floor by the fire.  
  
A log shifted in the fireplace and Muriel awoke. It was nearly dawn. She lay still a moment, surprised to find Sirius curled up next to her, his arm around her waist. She turned her head to see if he was awake, then gently lifted his arm and got up.  
  
After putting another log on the fire, she set to work making breakfast, trying to block out memories of the last time she'd awoken to find Sirius holding her. It had been a very long time ago.  
  
Over breakfast, they discussed the plan. An old, forgotten legend told of the sister amulets, one grants speed, the other power. Together they formed a weapon that could cast spells far more deadly than any wand. The first amulet had lain in the treasury at Malfoy Manor for decades, its ability forgotten. Draco told them how he had found it, and learned to use it.  
  
"It was all I could do to keep myself from wearing it for every Quidditch match. At least I would have managed to out-fly Harry with it. But I didn't. Father didn't know what it did, and once I learned to use it, I realized very quickly that I didn't ever WANT him to know. Dumbledore thinks that he might still not know how to activate it, even though Voldemort told him what it is, and where to look for its mate. If that's the case, we shouldn't have much trouble. Dumbledore seems to think the two of you are more than a match for Father." Draco finished with a smirk. Nothing would please him more than to see his two old Professors send Lucius Malfoy back to Azkaban. For one thing, it might mean he could go home to be with his mother.  
  
Muriel smiled slightly. She was surprised at Dumbledore's faith in her. The man had never liked her much, but then why should he have? She'd been nothing but trouble at school, that was for sure.  
  
"Professor Binns found the location of the amulets' shrine in a book that was published back when he was alive," Sirius said. "Malfoy has probably been looking all over Northern Europe for the last two months. If it hadn't been for that book, we would be too."  
  
They decided it would be best to search for the cave during daylight hours. The forest that surrounded them was larger than the Forbidden Forest of Hogwarts, and with much denser undergrowth. Chances were that they would not make very good time. They combed through the forest for days, returning weary at dusk to fall asleep before the fire. Draco had learned on the first night that having a bed and covers was not enough to keep him warm in this drafty shack.  
  
Over a week had passed. They left the cabin and got beyond Muriel's apparation wards, then disappeared, only to reappear where they'd left off the night before. Draco and Muriel started off at once, spreading out and looking for the signs that Professor Binns had told Sirius would be found near the cave entrance. No one spoke. It was entirely possible that Lucius and his friends had made their way to the wood by now.  
  
And there were other things to avoid in the wood as well. "Giants," Sirius muttered under his breath. He made his way quietly over to Muriel and steered her toward the sharp cliff he had been peering over. She swore softly, then gestured to Draco, who joined them.  
  
They stood, looking dejectedly out over the giants' camp, when they heard the unmistakable sound of footfalls behind them: very heavy, very noisy footfalls. And none of them spoke Giant.  
  
Sirius was the first to turn, and for his trouble he was swatted away, the giant's huge hand connecting with his rib cage. Muriel had a wand out, though she knew that there weren't many spells that would affect a giant. She quickly cast an invisibility spell over herself and Draco, holding him back with her free hand.  
  
The giant looked around, confused, before heading toward the only person it could still see. Sirius had connected with a tree and was slumped at the base of it, unconscious. Muriel wasn't going to be able to hold the spell on her and Draco for much longer, so she dropped it. As soon as Draco could see his hands, he grabbed a large branch, heaving it toward the lumbering figure. It turned.  
  
Muriel rushed to Sirius and struggled to lift him. His ribs were broken, but she didn't think they had punctured anything important. She apparated them as near to the cabin as she could. But she didn't have time to drag him up to the cabin. She threw her cloak over him and was about to leave to find Draco, when he appeared beside her with a crack.  
  
"Thank Merlin," she breathed. Draco hadn't been touched. Together they levitated Sirius back to the cabin, laying him gently on the bed. Muriel performed all the healing charms she knew. Draco knew a few more, having paid attention all those times he'd been sent to Madam Pomfrey.  
  
They would lose most of a day of searching today, and who knew how long it would take them to get through the area the giants inhabited. Muriel sat silently by the fire. Sirius had awoken long enough to eat something, then fallen back to sleep. He wouldn't be helping them look again for several days.  
  
"Well, are we still a match for Lucius?" Draco asked suddenly, sitting down hard and handing her a cup of tea.  
  
"I think so, yes." She laughed a little. "He won't be pleased to see me, I don't think." Her eyes glinted in the firelight as she remembered her encounters with a much younger Lucius Malfoy. Draco caught the look.  
  
"Do you know him?" he asked, then berated himself silently. Obviously if Professor Snape had gone to school with his father, so had Mur.  
  
Muriel looked at him appraisingly. He looked so much like Lucius that it was unnerving. She thought fast, trying to decide how much to tell the boy. She decided on only what she was supposed to remember.  
  
"Yes. He finished at Hogwarts in my 4th year. Everyone knew who he was, of course. The older girls were all vying for his attention. That good looking, and that much wealth, who could blame them. I imagine you had similar difficulties." She said, winking. "I, however, was only 14, and didn't think much of boys yet." Here she paused, smiling.  
  
"I was still spending all my time tormenting Severus. I had brought a boggart from home that year. I was planning to hide it under his bed, so I was on my way to the Slytherin dungeons. I'd bullied a 2nd year into giving me their password. But Professor Warrington, my head of house, was coming down the same corridor. I panicked, and threw the boxed boggart into a broom closet. Apparently I hadn't tied the box shut well enough because when I slammed the door, I heard screams. I performed my invisibility spell and stayed to watch.  
  
Lucius and your mother had sneaked into that broom closet. When the boggart came out of the box, it took on the form of your grandfather, the thing Lucius feared most. Not a great surprise to me, but you can imagine how the lovebirds panicked to be caught snogging by Mr. Malfoy." She paused to laugh softly at the disbelieving look on Draco's face. He had certainly considered his father to be above snogging in broom closets. 

"Warrington took care of the boggart for them, which was horribly embarrassing, I'm sure. When he'd gone, I saw Lucius bend over the box that was still on the floor of the closet. My name was on that box. I'd received a gift from my Aunt Rosa in it only a few months before. He graduated without ever having properly punished me." She finished.  
  
Draco wasn't quite sure what to say. Had Lucius actually cared for his mother back then? Finally he asked, "You and Professor Snape must have been great friends, if you thought he'd forgive you for a boggart under his bed." He'd spent a lot of time with Snape in the last two years, and he knew that he cared for Muriel a great deal.  
  
Muriel smiled into the firelight. "Severus forgave me more than that when we were young. I thought back then that he would forgive me anything. It turned out that I was wrong about that," she said quietly, her smile falling away.  
  
"He's forgiven you, you get along now." Draco said, not really sure what they were talking about suddenly.  
  
"Time heals a lot of injuries," Muriel said quietly. "Given enough time, anything can be forgiven."


	13. Chapter 12 Stolen Kiss

**Sirius vs. Venus: Round 2**

**Chapter 12 - Stolen Kiss**

**December, 2008**

Draco and Muriel spent the next week combing the forest on the other side of the giant encampment, but it was no use. Murphy's law had taken hold, and the cave had to be somewhere in the hills surrounding the vast valley the giants were using. Muriel took time out of her search to mutter a curse on Murphy, who, though long dead, certainly deserved her ire.  
  
Mur sat for a while each night beside Sirius, whose bruises had finally started to fade away. By the end of the week he could sit up without help. She smiled at him as he sipped the hot broth she'd brought in. "Are you going to let me come with you tomorrow?" he asked irritably. That morning she'd bound him to his bed and taken his wand before she left because he threatened to follow them.  
  
She passed a hand over his rib cage, and he was reminded of the day they'd dueled, when she'd visited him in the hospital wing. She must have been thinking of it too because she wasn't surprised when he reached for her hand and looked into her eyes. Sirius urged himself to say something, but nothing came into his head at all.  
  
"I think you should be able to be up and around tomorrow," she answered finally. He dropped her hand as she stood. "If you get some sleep," she added quietly. It seemed to her that he was hardly sleeping at all, though he never complained of pain. Perhaps he slept while they were away during the day. She took up her place by the fire, and Draco looked up.  
  
Muriel and Draco had spent most evenings discussing Ava. The girl was really a handful as far as the teachers were concerned, but once Draco had explained everything, Muriel could understand why. Ava had something to prove.  
  
"She's the best student in my class, and Severus says she isn't bad with potions either. Dumbledore is worried about her, though. I heard him having an argument with the Sorting Hat for refusing to sort her. I guess it's because she's half unicorn, though it didn't refuse to sort Remus, and he's a werewolf." Draco listened intently. He didn't know much about Ava, and was afraid to try and ask her himself, since every time he did, she started avoiding him.  
  
"Draco, do you know who her mother was? Dumbledore told me that she was a unicorn named Adella. My friend Maverick knew her. It was he who first discovered that unicorns could take human form. Severus and I used to visit him," she explained. "He was young then, but already a grouchy hermit. He lived on the other side of the forest from Hogwarts, so we had to go all the way through."  
  
Muriel stopped speaking and looked up from the fire. "I haven't thought about Maverick in a long time." She stood suddenly. She could feel a strange mixture of emotions coming from the other room. "I'm going to check on Sirius." She left Draco to wonder if this Maverick fellow had known that Adella was involved with Tom Riddle.  
  
When Mur entered, she saw Sirius put something quickly under the blanket. His mind seemed open as usual, however, so she didn't think anything of it. He made room for her to sit down on the bed.  
  
"I didn't know you knew Maverick," he said quietly. She took his hand.  
  
"I didn't know you knew him either." She didn't want to tell the story, since it involved Severus and that always tended to make Sirius angry. Instead she lay down on top of the covers and put an arm gently over his chest. She suppressed her laughter. Sirius obviously didn't realize that the old hermit he knew was the same man he had fed a potion to at their 4th year Halloween dance.  
  
Sirius was surprised, but grateful. The bed might be better for his ribs than the floor, but it was anything but warm. He slipped an arm under her head and pulled her as close to him as he dared. He didn't want her to change her mind because she was worried about his ribs. For the first time since Christmas, Sirius closed his eyes and fell quickly to sleep.  
  
Sirius opened an eye when Muriel stirred beside him, then closed it again as she carefully got out of bed and went into the other room. He heard her say good morning to Draco, and decided he'd better get up as well. Grinning foolishly in the cold light of dawn, he swung his legs out from under the covers. For the last three days, while Muriel and Draco had been out looking for the cave, he'd been getting up to make sure there was enough firewood. She'd tied him to the bed yesterday and left his wand in the other room, not realizing that he had mastered summoning small objects without it. He'd conjured an axe and taken a few good swings, since they'd used up most of the loose wood nearby. He knew that in spite of Muriel's fussing, he was ready to help out again.  
  
Mur had told him that they'd managed to skirt the giants pretty effectively during the last week, but that they were waiting for him before searching closer to their camp. He was secretly impressed that she had that much sense. When they were younger, she'd been at least as bad as he was at rushing into trouble unprepared.  
  
Unlike him, however, her schemes always seemed to come off without a hitch. He grimaced, thinking how he'd almost set Snape and Remus at deadly odds, then frowned, thinking how Snape had nearly handed him over to the dementors as a result. He dressed quickly and went out to stand by the fire.  
  
Muriel and Draco were laughing, and didn't seem to have noticed him. "Sev and I were known for harmless hexes, at least, when we were dealing with each other. In our 4th year we used to turn Mrs. Norris florescent green on a regular basis. We tried to do it while Filch was actually looking at her. He'd look around to see who might have done it, but of course I made sure we were invisible. He kept taking her to Madam Pomfrey, insisting that she was sick."  
  
Draco laughed heartily, normally a sound that would have pleased Sirius to no end. He was proud of how far the boy had come. But Sirius wasn't pleased. He was annoyed. Somehow, he thought everything should be different after last night. But it wasn't. All she ever talked about was Snivellous.  
  
She glanced up sharply as he thought this and their eyes met for a moment before he turned back to the fire. She hated it when he referred to Snape that way, and he knew he'd been caught.  
  
"I take it you weren't so easy on everyone else?" Draco asked, still laughing.  
  
"No," she answered slowly, forcing her eyes back to Draco. "No, between the two of us, we sent a good few people to the hospital ward." Sirius looked up again. He couldn't count the times she'd sent him to the hospital ward. Somehow those first 5 years of school seemed to push the memory of the last 2 out of his head.  
  
"Actually, it was always one of the same 4 people, James Potter, Remus Lupin, Sirius here, and -" she trailed off, her eyes narrowing dangerously. "And the traitor, Pettigrew." She spat.  
  
A moment of silence lapsed as she shoved her wand into her robes, and looked about, looking for anything else they might need. Sirius was still seething by the fire, but he could tell it was about time to go. He walked over and she forced a smile.  
  
"How many times did we send each other to Madam Pomfrey?" she asked, her voice a little too bright. His eyes flashed, and he walked past her to open the door.  
  
"Only as often as we both deserved," he answered quietly, holding the door open for a suddenly somber Draco. When she walked past him, he didn't meet her eye. 'I guess I'm back to being the enemy now that she and Snivellous are friends again,' he thought scathingly, not caring whether or not she heard him.  
  
Draco stayed as far ahead of them as he could, scrambling up and down the slope, and casting wary glances at the still sleeping giants. He could hear Muriel and Sirius whispering furiously behind him, and shook his head. He'd seen Ron and Hermione together enough to know that no one could fight like two people in love. It made him sad, somehow, since he'd noticed long ago that Professor Snape really liked Muriel. When Draco had confided in him about Ava, only a few weeks ago, Severus hadn't mentioned having any similar experiences. But something about his gentleness had spoken volumes, and it didn't take Hermione Granger to figure out how he felt. After all, until Muriel Deesia had appeared under the Sorting Hat, no one at Hogwarts would EVER have accused Snape of gentleness.  
  
Draco clenched his teeth, wondering suddenly who was falling in love with Ava while he was gone. He looked back at the giants, who were beginning to stir, and scrambled a little higher up the cliff. He chided himself for not paying attention, and focused his mind back on the search.  
  
"What is the matter with you this morning?" Muriel hissed, her eyes boring into Draco's back. She knew the boy wanted to get out of the way before it hit the fan, and was annoyed that Sirius had been so obviously upset.  
  
Sirius thought about all the things he could say and decided he'd upset her least if he just kept quiet. He knew his face was probably very red, and he'd already had to bring his hands up in front of his face to stop clenching them. Why did she have to talk about Severus in front of him anyway? She could just as easily have told Draco about the fun things THEY had done in school.  
  
"Because Draco ASKED me about Severus, you conceited git!" she said, answering his thoughts. She grabbed his arm, causing them to skid downward on the uneven ground. "Haven't I made it clear enough that you don't have anything to be jealous of?"  
  
He returned her gaze, his anger fading. Could it be that she was finally willing to talk about how she felt? But instantly the vision of her packing up her room flashed into his mind. "If I don't have to worry, then why are you moving back to Hogwarts?" he hissed back. "How much hope can I have if you're going to live with him?"  
  
It took great presence of mind at that moment not to slap Sirius silly. Fortunately, behind him, she could see the stirring giants, reminding her to keep from making any noise. "What difference does it make to you anyway?" she shot back instead. "You aren't happy with me around, and you don't ever want to talk to me. I would think you'd be relieved that I'm leaving." With that, she turned to stomp away. Draco had gotten too far ahead.  
  
But Sirius grabbed her wrist, pulling her back hard. They both skidded several more feet toward the giants, but Sirius didn't care. This was too important. He held her tight until they stopped. He looked into her eyes, which were still flashing angrily. He couldn't help but smirk. Her powerful magic had always gotten her her own way, and she wasn't used to being manhandled. It felt good to finally be holding her, even if she was struggling. "Let me go!" she said quietly.  
  
It was more than he could take. "Never," he whispered, lowering his lips quickly to hers. The very next sound was a resounding slap. Draco looked up suddenly from the strange plants he'd been examining. Muriel was scrambling dangerously toward him, and Sirius was blinking stupidly in the sunlight.  
  
Beside Sirius a huge rock shattered against the stony terrain, and they all turned toward the giant encampment to see several angry giants looking up at them. Another rock hit the ground near Muriel.  
  
"Apparate back to the cabin, NOW!" she shrieked, knowing that they were badly outnumbered. Both men disappeared and when she arrived on the hill outside the cabin they were looking at her in shock.  
  
She cast an angry glance at Sirius. "Another day wasted!" she spat. He winced as she stomped off. The words hurt him more than he wanted her to see, however, so he followed at a run. Draco, now that the danger was passed, sat down in the chilled sunshine and chuckled to himself. He held up a small burgundy flower. Orchids, growing in the mouth of the cave. He knew a little about flowers from his mother, and he knew they shouldn't be there in that bright sunlight. It was one of the signs Professor Binns had shown them from the book. He had found the cave. 


	14. Chapter 13 Giants, Demons and Deatheate...

**Sirius vs. Venus: Round 2**

**Chapter 13 - Giants, Demons, and Death Eaters**

**January, 2009**

They reached the cave early the next morning. It was still bitterly cold, but the sunlight was bright. Muriel kept them invisible as they climbed silently, dropping the spell only when they were within the darkness of the cave. No one wanted to provide target practice for the giants again. Draco cast a worried glance in her direction. The spell seemed to take a lot out of her, but Sirius had already taken her elbow and was leading her forward. Draco almost laughed at the furious look on her face. Apparently they had NOT worked anything out the night before.  
  
"Lumos," Draco muttered, leading the way. Sirius had already cast a charm to detect magical traps. Unfortunately, the charm didn't detect magical creatures.  
  
"Draco! Stop!" Sirius said suddenly, grabbing the young man by the back of his robes and hauling him backward. They'd been walking for several minutes.  
  
"Pentagons on the floor," Sirius said, pointing. Muriel muttered something the other two didn't hear, which was probably for the best. She quickly cast a spell, making each pentagon glow brightly.  
  
Professor Binns hadn't been able to tell them what sorts of traps might wait inside the cave. Draco knelt to look at the glowing lines on the floor. As Muriel's spell strengthened, beams of light began to emanate toward the ceiling from each pentagon, and a pattern started to emerge. Not all the forms on the floor were true pentagons, these areas weren't glowing.  
  
"If we can walk through without touching the light, we should be safe. If any part of you passes over one of the real pentagons, you'll be pulled into it." Muriel was whispering. She'd seen something similar to this once in Asia, when she was trying to get back to Europe. "And you won't be stuck alone. As soon as someone is pulled inside a pentagon, an Earth Demon will be conjured to crush him. We'd better leave our cloaks here."  
  
Sirius nodded and shrugged his cloak off, careful not to wince with the pain that movement caused. Muriel folded her cloak and laid it aside along with her bag, carefully avoiding Sirius' eye as he followed suit.  
  
Draco threw his things down next to theirs and turned to look again at the cavern ahead. The pathway was narrow indeed. With a last glance at the two behind him, he started forward.  
  
They were silent as they walked, carefully choosing their footing, and trying to be aware of the placement of their arms at all times. Muriel was thinking hard about any spell she knew that would work against Earth Demons in case she managed to get pulled into one of the pentagons. Ahead of her, Draco caught his foot on a stone, and fell forward. She reached out to steady him, thankful he hadn't fallen another inch. He turned and grinned, and then he was on the other side. She followed carefully. "Thanks," he whispered.  
  
As she emerged from the five-sided beams of light, she heard a thud behind her, followed by a low, inhuman grumble. She turned to see Sirius, who'd stumbled on the same block, fall headlong into the pentagon that Draco had so narrowly missed. He groaned as he hit, sure that he'd broken one of his recently healed ribs. Above him, clouds of brown vapor began to form, and Muriel knew it would only be a moment before he was alone in that Pentagon with a very angry Earth Demon.  
  
"Sirius, get up!" she screamed, running back through the pillars of light. Draco watched, wide eyed, as she dashed between them and threw herself into the already crowded pentagon.  
  
"What can I do?" He hollered.  
  
"Stay back!" She reached Sirius and pulled him roughly to his feet. He was holding his ribcage and grimacing, but he'd already drawn his wand. She swore loudly.  
  
The vapor was so dense above them that they couldn't see through it. A huge, rough-hewn face, pulled back in an ugly sneer, looked down on them, as though the monster was hanging upside down.  
  
Sirius tried to hex it, but Muriel didn't waste her time. "You can't hurt it with a wand. Brute force is the only thing that's going to work, it's too magical."  
  
"Brute force isn't my speciality today. Ask me tomorrow," he shot back, wincing. She spared him a withering glance.  
  
"You'll have to transfigure ME! Turn me into a troll."  
  
Sirius stood, indecisive, for a moment too long. Out of the vapor, a huge, rocky hand appeared and back-handed him across the face, splitting his chin and blackening his eye with the same blow. The fist was almost as large as his head. He flew backwards into the wall of light at the edge of the pentagon. Thankfully, he was still awake. He pointed his wavering wand at Muriel, who was already dodging the Earth Demon desperately.  
  
"SIRIUS!" Muriel felt the demon's monstrous hand grasp her around the waist and squirmed to see where he'd gone. She saw him aim his wand. An instant later, the demon's grip was broken as she began to change into a troll.  
  
It wasn't easy to concentrate once the transformation took hold, but after the demon's next punch landed, the troll instincts took over anyway. It wasn't a long fight. Muriel had no weapon, and needed none. In only a few moments, one of the demon's arms lay shattered into stone fragments on the ground. Sirius scooted to the other side of the pentagon, out of the way, as the rocks fell heavily to the ground. In spite of the blow he'd received, he struggled to remain conscious. He had no idea if Draco would be able to transform Muriel back.  
  
Sirius winced as another of the demon's blows landed on the troll's face, knocking it backward several steps. The troll howled in rage and took the demon's head in its hands, squeezing until the rock crumbled and a huge cloud of dust erupted from between its fingers.  
  
Sirius waited to see what would happen. The rocks around him had become vapor again. A moment later, he was alone in the pentagon chamber with the troll. A shout rang out across the room, but he concentrated, performing the spell to change Mur back just before he slumped backwards. The light around the pentagon disappeared, and he fell, unconscious, onto the path outside.  
  
Muriel found herself shrinking, and her head clearing. She hated trolls. She reached for her wand to levitate Sirius to safety, but was interrupted as Draco called her name again. She looked around frantically. Where had the boy gone? It didn't matter. She couldn't just leave Sirius here. She levitated him carefully and guided them both between the few remaining pentagons. The glow was beginning to dissipate now. She set him down gently on the other side, well away from the floor they had just crossed.  
  
"Ennervate," she whispered. When his eyes opened, she gave him back his wand and told him harshly to stay put, before racing up an uneven staircase to find Draco.  
  
"Mur!" Draco called again from up ahead. She reached his side and blinked into the darkness, unable to believe her eyes. What in Merlin's beard was a SPHINX doing this far north?  
  
Before them paced a beautiful creature with the face of a woman and the body of a lion. It wore an Egyptian headdress that appeared to be ancient. 'The jewels on that alone are worth a fortune,' Draco thought.  
  
"It wants to give us a riddle," he said, "but I told it to wait for you. Where's Sirius?"  
  
"I had to leave him there, but he's awake." Muriel didn't take her eyes of the Sphinx. She remembered from Auror training that the beasts were not to be trusted until they'd given you their riddle. She stepped forward.  
  
"Ah, you are now ready for your riddle. Good of you not to keep me waiting." As the beast spoke, Muriel noticed a soft light behind it, falling on a beautiful marble sculpture. It was a strangely proportioned Egyptian piece, probably as old as the Sphinx's headdress. Around the sculpture's neck was a large amulet with a huge ruby in the center.  
  
"Another moment!" Draco said, pulling Muriel back. "That's not the amulet! It's too large to fit into the engraving on Father's amulet." He threw a glance over his shoulder to make sure the Sphinx wasn't poised to attack. "It should be -" He stopped and turned to face the Sphinx, who had heard every word.  
  
"Who are you?" The creature hissed, stepping forward, but it was too late, Draco had figured it out.  
  
He spoke with confidence. "An excellent riddle, to which I know the answer," he replied haughtily. The creature sputtered. She hadn't intended to ask a question, and knew that she was bound now by the laws of her kind not to harm him if he answered correctly.  
  
"I am Draco Malfoy, the man who will take that amulet from the center of your headdress." The Sphinx hissed, but lowered her head in defeat. He carefully pried a silver-ringed jewel from her headdress, fastening it to a plain chain he'd worn under his robes.  
  
"Thank you," he said simply to the Sphinx, who was eyeing him menacingly. They hurried back down the steps to Sirius, who had managed to knit his ribs again crudely, and was standing. Draco looked away from his face quickly. Half of it was entirely purple, and blood was still pouring from his split chin.  
  
They made it back through the Earth Demon pentagons without mishap. On the other side, however, they found their cloaks and bags gone. Mur thought furiously of the healing herbs she'd brought with her that would have taken away some of Sirius' pain.  
  
Sirius, however, pulled out his wand. "Someone's been here," he hissed. They continued more cautiously, Sirius in the lead, until they reached the mouth of the cave. Here they paused to allow their eyes to adjust. It was midday, and the sun was bright.  
  
Lucius Malfoy, Wilkes and Crabbe had followed them out of the cave, waiting for just this moment to attack. After they'd heard the Sphinx's riddle, they'd backed away, unable to answer. But when they'd seen Sirius, Muriel and Draco, a better plan had occurred to Lucius.  
  
Lucius grabbed Draco from behind, pulling him back toward the Earth Demon chamber. "How embarrassing that the girl had to fight the demon while you stood by," he taunted. Draco and his father were of a height, and the younger man twisted angrily out of his grip as Muriel blocked Crabbe's first spell. Crabbe was slow, and she soon had him stunned and tied up.  
  
Wilkes had tried to take advantage of Sirius' injuries, aiming a violent kick at his ribs, but all that landed on Sirius was the peacock feather into which he had transfigured the death eater. He cast it aside, and turned with Muriel and Draco to face Lucius.  
  
"Hullo Lucius! Imagine finding you in a place like this. And I thought you spent all your time in broom closets." Muriel was grinning, and Draco, having heard that story so recently, couldn't help but smirk as well. He was afraid of his father, as were most wizards and witches, but with Sirius and Muriel along, it didn't look like things were going to get out of hand.  
  
He spared a glance over his shoulder at Crabbe, who was straining against the devil's snare Muriel had conjured to hold him. Beside him, his wand lay in three pieces.  
  
When Draco looked away, Lucius took his chance. "Slicilious Hantremous!" he shouted, pointing his wand at Draco. Not ready for the attack, Draco cried out as several huge gashes appeared in his robes, and on his face. The blood soaked him almost immediately and he stumbled backwards. 

"Lucius, you bastard!" Muriel hissed. She watched his eyes widen briefly, then narrow. He knew, now, that she remembered.  
  
Muriel quickly cast a shield spell around herself and Sirius. But they stumbled out of the way anyway as a bolt of green light shattered her shield, blowing a huge crater in the floor at their feet. Lucius wasn't messing around.  
  
"Draco, get out of here!" Sirius bellowed.  
  
Lucius thought fast. " Fighting for the wrong side again Deesia? We thought since you were nice enough to send Severus back to us that you'd finally come to your senses. I always knew you wouldn't really marry this filthy blood traitor." He was stalling, and they knew it, but Muriel answered anyway, talking quickly as she felt Sirius' anger rising.  
  
"I sent you back a spy as you well know, Lucius." Her wand was raised and her eyes narrowed. She quietly cast an anti-apparation spell on the cave. A moment later she heard Lucius swear softly.  
  
"Not this time, Malfoy. Accio amulet!" Sirius said suddenly. But Lucius was too fast. As the amulet broke its chain to obey Sirius, Lucius cast a shield spell between them. The amulet hit it and fell to the floor, and he had snatched it up before Muriel could summon it herself.  
  
"Incendio!" he shrieked, pointing his wand at it triumphantly. His entire hand burst into flames. A moment later the amulet was gone, his gloved hand unharmed. With a smirk he dusted the ashes off his gloves.  
  
Muriel took a deep breath and removed the anti-apparation charm, covering Lucius with her wand as she did so. She stepped carefully over to where Sirius was lifting Draco from the ground. She gave Lucius one last glance, shaking her head, "Come with us, Lucius," she whispered. But he kept his haughty expression firmly in place.  
  
"Until next time, Deesia," Lucius sneered, taking note of Black's scowl as they disapparated. As soon as they were gone, he swore loudly. Now not only did they not have both amulets, they didn't even have one. His master was not going to be pleased. It would certainly not be pleasant to deliver the news that Muriel Deesia had joined the Order of the Phoenix.  
  
He released Crabbe and woke him up, then looked around for Wilkes. He was gone. Crabbe gathered up the pieces of his wand, then bent down again to pick up the peacock feather that lay not far away. Maybe it would make a nice quill. The oaf spared only a moment's thought as to where it might have come from before he followed Malfoy back to explain the fiasco to Lord Voldemort.

* * *

_AN: Here ends Sirius' second round. How did he do this time, do you think? And as for the voting, the scores stand thus:_

_Draco in dead last at only 2 votes._

_Remus not doing much better with 5 votes._

_Sirius holding out the longest at 7 votes._

_And VENUS whipping them all nicely with 15 votes as of 9-28-04._


	15. Chapter 14 Writing Again

**Remus vs. Venus: Round 3**

**Chapter 14 - Writing Again**

**January, 2009**

Sirius, Muriel and Draco appeared abruptly in the kitchen of Grimmauld place. Muriel ushered the men to the table and began making bandages and ice packs. Theda came downstairs, a large roll of parchment under her arm. She'd been on her way to deliver her latest story to Dumbledore, but set it down to help take care of their injuries instead. "What happened?" she asked, handing Sirius a cloth to wrap around the bag of ice he was holding to his face.  
  
"Just what you wrote would happen. We got the second amulet, but Malfoy destroyed the first one to keep us from taking it." Sirius spat out the Death Eater's name like it was skele-gro and Draco winced. It wasn't easy sharing a name with one of the most feared wizards of the era. Muriel shot Sirius a nasty look as Theda pushed the boy's disheveled blond hair back out of his face, revealing yet another cut on his hairline.  
  
"Looks like you got the worst of it, Draco," she said softly, cleaning the wound gently with another cloth. Sirius had the good grace to look embarrassed, and Muriel took Draco upstairs to rest. The trio had been gone for nearly a month, and Theda was grateful that they'd made it back in one piece. Sirius remained in the kitchen, not willing to begin the fight he knew he would shortly be having with Muriel about Malfoy. Finding himself alone with Theda for the first time since before Christmas, he pushed his weariness aside and asked her the question he'd meant to ask before they'd left.  
  
"How did you know Remus was interested in you?" Theda, standing at the sink, continued to rinse out the bloody rags. She didn't turn around to answer.  
  
"I told you the day after I arrived that I'd never written the story of Darren's death. The truth is, I did write a good bit of it. But I only had to begin it to know how Remus felt. He started caring for me before we even met." Her shoulders shook, but her voice was even. She still didn't turn to look at him. "I've been so careful. I didn't want to hurt him by talking too much about - my life before I came here. So I tried just to mind my own business and write. That's about all I can contribute to the cause anyway, since no one will let me out of the house without a guard."  
  
Sirius smiled a bit. He knew how it felt to be cooped up in the house, watching everyone else risk their lives. But he was worried about his friend. Remus wasn't exactly experienced with women, and Sirius didn't want him getting hurt. He opened his mouth to reply, but she'd started speaking again.  
  
"But every day he shows up in my room with tea. At first I thanked him and went back to writing. But I couldn't stand the way he wouldn't look at me the rest of the day when I did that, so pretty soon I was inviting him to join me. He would sit and drink his tea and we'd talk over whatever the prediction of the day was, and then he'd go. And that was fine. But by Christmas he'd started asking me about other things." She stopped again, and finally turned to face him. "What kind of person would I be, talking to him about Darren when I know it would only hurt him?" she demanded.  
  
Sirius was surprised. He hadn't expected that she would be just as worried about Remus' feelings as he was. He was even more surprised when he invited her to sit down. "Well, you can always talk to me, you know. It has to be hard, not to get to talk about him at all." It was long after midnight when Theda finally went up to bed, feeling better than she had in a good long while. She hadn't expected Sirius to be so understanding. Maybe the books she'd read about him didn't do him justice. Or maybe Muriel had finally knocked some sense into him. She fell asleep easily for the first time since her friends had left, thinking to herself how nice it was to finally feel like she had friends again.  
  
It was 4 am when she sat up in bed, not sure what had awakened her. Heads were sticking out of doorways as Remus threw on his robes and rushed to her room. Everyone had heard her shrieking his name. He met Sirius on the landing. "Is she alright?"  
  
"I'm going to check now. Probably it was just a nightmare."  
  
Sirius nodded in response, and went back to bed. He knew the house was extremely secure. Since the incident when Draco had first come to stay with them several powerful charms and wards had been used in addition to a new fiddelius charm. Remus pushed open Theda's door. He caught a glimpse of her sitting at the writing desk, her back was to him, and in the light of the only candle she'd lit, he could see that she wasn't dressed. The door squeaked, and they both jumped. Theda stood abruptly and turned as Remus averted his eyes.  
  
"Oh!" she exclaimed. "Accio robes!" Her wardrobe door burst open and in a moment she was dressed. "Sorry," she said sheepishly. "I didn't realize I'd made enough noise to wake anyone."  
  
Remus turned back to her, not sure exactly what to say. He swiftly decided to ignore what he'd just seen. "I heard you all the way upstairs."  
  
"Sorry," she said again. "I had an awful nightmare. And I'm afraid it wasn't just a dream. I was just starting to write it all out. I have to get it all on paper before it jumbles together in my head." She smiled. "Maybe you wouldn't mind - "  
  
"Oh, right," he said, cutting her off. "I'll just get back to bed." He turned to go, embarrassed to have been in her way.  
  
"Actually," she said quickly, "I was wondering if you would sit with me a while." Remus turned, unable to hide the disbelief on his face. "If you aren't too tired, I mean. It would be a comfort to be able to see you and know you're home safe right now."

When the light crept through the window to touch her face, she awoke and raised her head from the desk. Even in her sleep she'd had another idea about the story she was writing. The ideas floating in her head were far in advance of what she'd actually been able to write down so far. It was going to be a long story, and she was starting to think it was going to be really important too, at least to Remus and Sirius. She jumped as the door creaked open, and looked behind her to see Remus, carrying a tray of tea. "Thanks. Sorry if I kept you up all night." She took the tea gratefully. "When did I fall asleep?"  
  
"Only about an hour ago. So, are you ready to tell me what this story's about?  
  
"This one's about Wormtail, Remus," she said quietly. He sat up a bit straighter, and looked like he was about to start firing off questions. She cut him off. "It looks like it might be important, but I've got a lot of work still to do on it. I'll make you a copy before I take it to Dumbledore." Remus knew an invitation to leave when he heard one.  
  
He nodded. "All right. Let me know if you need anything."  
  
"Thanks." He closed the door behind him and she sat for a moment, sipping her tea. Soon Remus, still standing outside her door, could hear the scratch of her quill on the parchment.  
  
"Morning, Moony!"  
  
Remus jumped and turned to look at Sirius. "You look like hell," he commented dryly. He hadn't been able to see Sirius' injuries in the dark the night before. Sirius grinned, which only made him look worse. The left side of his face was completely purple from his eye to his chin, which was covered with a bandage.  
  
"Thanks! Let's get breakfast, I'm starving." They headed downstairs to find something to eat.  
  
Theda stayed in her room writing until long after lunch. Remus took her up something to eat around 2, but she hardly looked up. He left the tray and headed back upstairs, finding Sirius lounging on the couch in the drawing room, reading a letter from Harry. "What's he up to anyway?" Remus asked. Harry lived at Grimmauld Place, but you could hardly tell it. He spent less time there than Draco did, between work for the Ministry and Dumbledore, and staying over at Ron and Hermione's house.  
  
"He didn't say, as usual. But it looks like he's planning to be here for dinner for once." 

"With us gone this last month and Theda not allowed to go out by herself I don't think there's much food left in the house, Padfoot. I guess I'd better go and get a few things."  
  
"I'll go with you!" Sirius said. Remus smiled. He knew it was important to Sirius to be the one to do things for Harry.  
  
"I don't think so, mate. You're a mess." He smirked at the bruised and bandaged face of his friend. "You can cook it. It looks like Theda's going to be a bit too busy." He grabbed a cloak from his room and was gone, hoping it wouldn't take him too long to get everything. Harry never seemed to have a particular time in mind for dinner. He could be there at 4, or not until 9, so it was hard to plan for!  
  
Sirius took the note down with him to the second floor and stuck his head in Theda's door. "How's it going?"  
  
She was sitting back in her chair, eating one of the sandwiches Remus had brought up. When she looked up, he could see that she'd been crying. "Not well," she said, putting on a brave face. "I don't see any way that Remus will come back if he volunteers for this mission, and he volunteers for EVERYTHING."  
  
Sirius' face fell, but he rebounded quickly. "Come on, if he can handle that werewolf transformation, he can handle anything!" He'd meant the statement to relieve her worry, but she looked up again sharply.  
  
"I thought the transformation was easier with the wolfsbane potion?"  
  
"Er - well, it is, but Snape keeps saying he doesn't have enough time, and - Where are you going?" As he spoke she stood and grabbed a cloak, her eyes flashing angrily.  
  
"I'll be back shortly." He stepped aside to let her pass and soon heard the familiar whoosh of flame as she traveled by floo powder to Hogwarts.

_AN: Another chance to vote! Who will win the match? Remus or Venus?_


	16. Chapter 15 Standing Up To Severus

**Severus vs. Someone Else's Girl: Mini Match**

**Chapter 15 - Standing Up To Severus**

**January, 2009**  
  
The Potions classroom door burst open. Several third year students jumped, inadvertently adding far too many newt eyes to an already difficult potion.  
  
"Professor," Theda began as she reached his desk. Snape looked up as if he hadn't noticed her entrance. He raised an eyebrow in acknowledgement. "I require the ingredients list and instructions for Wolfsbane potion." Her voice was low, she didn't want to anger him, but she wanted it clear that she wasn't taking no for an answer.  
  
"Impossible. It's far too difficult for you." He smiled grimly, but his perfect mask faltered when she smiled right back.  
  
"Fine. I'll ask Professor Deesia. I'm sure she's up to it, and I know you wouldn't deny her access to your ingredients." Snape's smirk fell from his face. It wouldn't do to have Mur find out that he'd been denying the potion to Lupin. Furthermore Mur would blow Grimmauld place to cinders trying to brew Wolfsbane. He rummaged through his desk for parchment and waved his wand over it. The words appeared on the page.  
  
Theda took it and cast a glance toward the store room door. Scowling, Snape flicked his wand again and the door opened a crack.  
  
"Thank you." He didn't reply, so she gathered the correct ingredients, piling them all into an extra cauldron, as she didn't have one of her own. When she emerged he looked up. "I'll be back when it's complete so you can test it to be sure I've done it correctly." Her voice was tense as she was straining with the weight of the loaded cauldron.  
  
"I may not have time to - " he began, but she cut him off.  
  
"Then I'll come during class," she snapped. "Your students may not learn it from you, but at least from me they will learn that the best use for their skills is helping other human beings!"  
  
Professor Snape was stunned. He stood suddenly and placed both hands solidly on his desk, as if to restrain them from strangling her. "He's a werewolf!" he hissed vehemently.  
  
"He's a good deal more human than you are!" Her words hung in the air as she turned and struggled out the door. None of the students dared make a sound, but an exceptionally brave young Gryffindor took one end of the cauldron and left to help her carry it back to the fireplace.  
  
"You have 15 minutes remaining to complete your potion. Get back to work!" Professor Snape barked. Silently the class complied, wondering what exactly had just taken place.


	17. Chapter 16 Seeing Her Again

_AN: A thought about strong men and strong women: I do not think that capitulating to what a woman demands makes a man weak. In fact, in the case of a Slytherin such as Severus, I think choosing battles wisely is a strength. I do not think being in love makes a man weak either. Yes, Sirius acts differently toward Muriel than he would toward anyone else. I fully expect that if anyone else had tried to keep him abed while they were out working, there would have been a full-blown argument, but remember, part of him wants her back, so he's bound to make a few concessions. That doesn't make him weak. Okay, /soapbox . On another note, I agree with reviewers that Remus is losing rather spectacularly. But then he's never HAD a serious relationship, so he can hardly be expected to resist. Draco, however, hasn't done too badly. Watch the time jump on this chapter and you'll see what I mean._

**

* * *

**

**Draco vs. Venus: Round 3 **

**(very short round, by virtue of their conflicting schedules)**

**Chapter 16 - Seeing Her Again**

**June, 2009**  
  
Although Harry and Draco had only spent a year in the Auror training program, their help was needed, and they found they hardly had time to study between working for the ministry and working for the Order of the Phoenix. Draco was continually running back and forth between Fudge and Dumbledore, taking messages and making plans. He was leaving Hogwarts to return home, exhausted, when someone approached him on the lawn.

"Hello, Draco." She hadn't seen him in nearly a year, and was surprised how little it had aged him. She had asked Dumbledore about him once or twice and learned how busy he was, and how involved in the dangerous work of the Order.  
  
Draco kept walking. He didn't have it in him to give her the apology he knew she deserved. He just wanted to go home and fall into bed.  
  
Ava watched him with a growing anger. He was NOT just going to ignore her. "I heard about Goyle. I'm sorry," she called, when he was several feet away.  
  
At this he rounded suddenly. "Me too," he spat. He felt a twinge of guilt as she cringed. None of this was her fault. Remembering this, he softened his voice. "How are things?" he asked. "I hear you are taking 2nd and 3rd year classes."  
  
"Yes. Hermione told me in a letter that if I really wanted to join the war early she knew a way, so I borrowed Professor McGonagal's time turner. I tried to convince her to let me do all the years at once, but she didn't think that would work. I had to settle for two years at a time." She sounded bitter now, and Draco felt even guiltier. He knew it was because of his accusations that she felt so strongly about fighting Voldemort.  
  
"Look, I'm out of time," he said, starting off again. "See you."  
  
"See you," she echoed. She watched him as he headed down the road to Hogsmeade.  
  
As soon as Draco was off Hogwarts grounds he apparated home to discover Harry already there. He went upstairs to bed without saying a word. Two hours later he came storming back down the stairs. Harry looked up again.  
  
"All I wanted in the wide world was to get to sleep tonight, and do you think I can?" Draco grimaced as he threw himself elegantly into a chair in front of the fire, and stared into the flames. "I can't do anything but think of her."

* * *

_AN: Last official round for Draco and Ava. Vote today! Then stop back to find out how it all concludes!_


	18. Chapter 17 Remus' Missions

**Remus vs. Venus: Overtime**

**Chapter 17 - Remus' Missions**

**August, 2009**  
  
Remus sat on the back porch at Grimmauld place, thinking back on the last year. Harry, Ron, Hermione and Draco had all completed their N.E.W.T.s with sufficient grades to make the Auror program, and the boys had since been doing the work of full Aurors. Of course, these days the ministry was willing to take just about anyone who wanted the job, so it hadn't been such a big deal. Still, he was proud of them, glad that he'd been their professor, even if it had only been for a year. He smiled, looking out over the yard and picturing again the look on Harry's face when Ron and Hermione had announced their engagement. He knew that look well, since he had worn it years ago, when he heard that James and Lily had become engaged.  
  
The summer was nearly over now, and he'd just returned from yet another mission for the Order of the Phoenix. He knew he'd be leaving again tonight, and for longer. His smile faded. He hadn't been up to see Theda in the two days that he'd been back. Sirius had mentioned to him last winter that she was flustered by his continual presence, and he'd done his best to keep from bothering her. He'd gone on every mission Dumbledore mentioned except one. He frowned deeply, remembering.  
  
They'd sat in the kitchen as always, holding their meeting. Dumbledore had said that before the Easter holiday Severus had received some rather vague information about a new Death Eater plot. Remus hadn't really been paying attention. He intended to volunteer, of course, but just then he'd been staring at Theda, who'd been staring at the table. He was particularly interested in her that day because she'd recently gone out of her way to learn to make Wolfsbane potion. Sirius had let slip that Snape was failing to make it about every other month out of spite, and she'd gone up to the school, interrupted a potions class and demanded access to the instructions and ingredients. Remus, busy contemplating what reason she could possibly have had for staring down Snape, had completely missed what Dumbledore was saying. He didn't begin concentrating on the meeting again until her head had suddenly snapped up from the table. She'd looked right at him. He'd promptly turned his eyes back to Dumbledore and had realized too late that whatever he'd missed was about him.  
  
"Remus can't go." Theda had said, staring at him. She looked worried, as though waiting for him to contradict her. Relief had flooded her face when, in confusion, he'd mumbled something incoherent. The meeting had resumed, and others had been chosen. He felt his face flush even now as he thought back on it. Wormtail, who had escaped several months previously, had been on that mission. Sirius had come back looking as though he'd been a chew toy for a giant. Wormtail had apparently continued to beat him with his solid silver hand even after he'd been stunned. Moody and Tonks had barely managed to bring Sirius back at all. Each of them was badly injured. Remus knew that if he'd gone in Sirius' place he would have been killed by that silver hand.  
  
He let his anger wash over him in waves. He hated Wormtail for a great many things, and he hadn't been happy about missing a second chance to kill him. But he wasn't one to act while he was angry. He had waited, biding his time. Unfortunately he was still waiting. Waiting and thinking seemed like all he ever did in this place. He stood up abruptly and went back inside to pack for his next trip. He was almost knocked over when Theda's door opened and she came tumbling out. She was, predictably, clutching a roll of parchment. Her eyes looked wild. "Remus!" she exclaimed. "I didn't know you were back. Is Dumbledore here?"  
  
He started to say that he hadn't seen him, but she cut him off. "I'm sorry. You just got back, didn't you? I've got to get to Hogwarts. We'll have to act on this today!" She raced off down the stairs toward the fireplace. Remus felt guilty for a moment. She obviously didn't realize that he'd been home for 2 days and hadn't bothered to look in on her, and he hoped that she never found out.  
  
He had just finished packing when Dumbledore's face appeared in the mirror by the door. "There will be an Order meeting in 20 minutes at headquarters," was all he said. The mirror went dark immediately. Remus went downstairs to start making something for the other members to eat. Harry and Ron had already arrived in the kitchen. Remus shrugged when they looked at him with questions in their eyes. They were joined shortly by Draco, and then Hermione, who looked uncharacteristically ruffled. Ron's eyes bulged a bit. He'd specifically asked her to stay out of the Order. She'd complied, choosing to train as a medi-witch instead. She gave him a warning look, however, and he held his tongue.  
  
Dumbledore, Muriel, Severus, and Theda entered from the hall, and others were coming in the front door. When everyone was seated, Dumbledore began to explain. "We have reason to believe that several muggle families, particularly those whose children were and are in Gryffindor, may be Voldemort's next targets. We know that the following families will have to be hidden before nightfall today. He read off the list slowly.  
  
"Finch-Fletchly, Finnegan, Granger," in general, no one was listening after Hermione's name was read. They were all staring at her instead. Order members were sent to each family on the list, and several others that might be targets, to help them pack and find places to hide. Ron and Hermione left immediately for the Granger residence, and Harry left to tell Seamus Finnegan. He was still living at home, so Harry was able to come back almost immediately, knowing that Seamus could use his own magic to pack quickly and get his family to safety. Remus, who had not bothered to sit down for the meeting, was marveling over the efficiency of it all. The last time he had been in a situation like this, during Voldemort's first rise to power, there had never been any warning. The Order had been able only to respond, never to prevent. He thought bitterly of how unfair it was that the prophetic stories hadn't been available to help them save James and Lily.  
  
Muriel was staring at him, so he excused himself and went back upstairs. He'd been out of Headquarters so long on various missions that he'd forgotten to disguise his thoughts. He threw himself on his bed, staring at the ceiling. He knew if he left this early in the day there would be questions. He would just have to wait until everyone got back and the muggles they were responsible for were safe. He was startled by a knock at the door. He waved his wand idly toward it and it creaked open. He had never been one to use magic for no good reason, but he was feeling particularly lethargic today.  
  
Theda stuck her head in the door. "Sorry," she said. "Sirius told me you were leaving again tonight, and I just wanted to give you this." She set a flask down at the foot of the bed as he sat up. "It'll keep four more days, according to Professor Snape."  
  
"Thanks." He opened his trunk and tucked the flask safely in with his clothes.  
  
"A long trip this time?' She was pointing to the trunk. Usually he only packed a duffel bag, but this was going to be different. She didn't ask where he was going, though he knew she hadn't written any stories about this particular trip. He nodded. "Well, hopefully it isn't so far away that you can't apparate back each month for your potion."  
  
"There may be some months when I can't make it back," he said dully. She smiled at him, knowing better than to ask him what was wrong.  
  
"When you can, the potion will be waiting." He fell back on the bed as the door closed softly behind her. Even when members of the order started appearing again in the kitchen to report on the day's work, Remus didn't get up. When the room was entirely dark he finally stood, lifted his trunk, and disapparated.


	19. Chapter 18 Recruiting The Werewolves

**Remus vs. Venus: Round 4**

**Chapter 18 - Recruiting The Werewolves**

**September, 2009**  
  
Sirius stood in Dumbledore's office, pacing. By the time the headmaster arrived, Sirius was furious. "What is THIS?" he asked, throwing the letter down in front of Dumbledore as he sat. The headmaster unfolded the letter.  
  
"It appears to be a job offer," he said mildly. Sirius wasn't amused.  
  
"So you sent Snape with Moony?" It wasn't a question, it was an accusation. Dumbledore simply nodded. Sirius returned to pacing. He couldn't understand why Dumbledore would send Remus and Snape anywhere alone together. "I'd like to know what their mission is," Sirius said finally, falling gracefully into the nearest chair and looking at, of all things, the sorting hat on its shelf.  
  
"I am not even sure myself what they will or will not accomplish. I know only that our best Potions Master was necessary, and that person is Professor Snape. Why Severus required Remus to accompany him I am not sure, only that he was essential to the plan."  
  
"YOU weren't told?" Sirius jumped from his chair again. "You mean all of this was Snivellous' idea?!" It was at this moment that Muriel and Theda came thundering up the stairs to the headmaster's office. Sirius was distracted briefly when Theda threw down her parchment in a gesture that was remarkably like the one he'd just performed.  
  
"You have to tell them to come back now!" she exclaimed breathlessly. At this Dumbledore raised his eyebrows and unrolled the parchment. It took him an interminably long time to read the entire story. Theda and Muriel had collapsed into chairs, and Sirius was standing stiffly behind Muriel. It was nearly Christmas, but no one was in much of a mood to celebrate. They hadn't seen Remus since August, and Severus had left a month ago. The interim Potions Master, Utho Rehark, had not worked out, and Dumbledore had only just broken down and asked Sirius to come back. He'd been afraid, however, of this kind of reaction.  
  
Finally he lifted his eyes from the paper to gaze at them. Muriel and Theda looked worried, Sirius, just angry. "In summary, this says that if we do not bring them back immediately, it is likely that Severus will be discovered by Voldemort and killed. It does not say anything, however, about what will happen to Remus. If this is correct, he is currently using poly juice potion to impersonate a werewolf of high esteem within Voldemort's circle. If this is the case, we have no way to contact him, but Severus should be alone most of the time. Muriel, I think it would be best if you go alone to collect them." Sirius was about to interrupt when Dumbledore added, " We cannot have the entire Order flocking toward them, or their position will be compromised. Muriel is best equipped to locate Severus, and together they should have little problem recovering Remus." His tone indicated that the discussion was over, so the three members of the Order left, heading for the fireplace that would take them home. Sirius and Muriel were having a rather heated discussion about the merits of this plan, but Theda was silent.  
  
She was usually silent, so no one noticed. She went immediately back to her room and wrote the story again, noting the changes that would take place now that a course of action was decided. Still, the outcome wasn't to her liking. She wanted a clear-cut ending where everyone would come home. Thinking briefly, she made several more changes, ones that only she could make. Finally, at almost 2 in the morning, she got the results she wanted. She dressed carefully in something warm, throwing a cloak over herself and picking up her wand. She had a lot to do.  
  
Two hours later she appeared in the middle of the Forbidden Forest. She knew she was a long way from Hogwarts, but looking around her, she realized this was the right general area. The full moon was two nights away, falling on Christmas Eve this year. She had to find Remus. It was likely that he was impersonating Lance Garratt, the head of a pack of werewolves that were currently in Voldemort's service. She patted her pockets. Each contained a flask of potion, one was poly juice, the other Wolfsbane. She was perfectly capable of brewing each, although the poly juice she had borrowed from Snape's store room. It kept indefinitely until the bit of the person you wanted to change into was added, but it took a month to make. Her plan was to wait until Muriel came for Snape, then tell them to go without herself and Remus. She would be able to take Severus' place as the Potions Master needed for the assignment. She ran a hand along the inside pocket of her robe as well. The small vial she'd prepared earlier was also in place.  
  
She made her way to the cave, where the story indicated Snape was hiding and found him there, sleeping. She hooted softly, it sounded very fake, but it woke him up and put him on guard. By the time Muriel arrived, he had packed up half his potions ingredients, which were scattered around haphazardly. Theda let them finish. Knowing that she would need those ingredients, however, she approached them, walking so as not to disguise her footsteps and holding a shield charm in front of her just in case. Sure enough, Severus shot a stunning spell toward the sound of her approach, which glanced harmlessly off the charm.  
  
"Thanks," she whispered. She heard Muriel gasp and Severus swear under his breath. "There's been a change." She entered the cave, not needing to stoop as Severus was to avoid the rock formations. When she had found out that Remus was indeed impersonating Garratt, she asked the obvious question. "Why?"  
  
"Dumbledore has long thought it important that we try to sway the werewolves to our cause. Lance Garratt had a nasty habit of feeling out dissenters and making them disappear. Lupin was able to incapacitate him. Then he sent word to me that we were ready for the next phase, and I joined him here. As Garratt, he could make a big deal out of finding out traitors to Voldemort's cause. Then he could make them disappear, and reappear at Hogwarts. Dumbledore has given each of them a room in the teacher's corridor and a cell in the dungeons. I believe he was counting on you to make enough Wolfsbane potion to keep them quiet in a few days." Snape sneered at her, although secretly he was still impressed that she'd mastered the potion so quickly.  
  
"You'll have to be the one to do that, Sev," Muriel said firmly. "We've got to get you out of here." She explained the story. "There was no way to keep you here and safe, so you've got to come home."  
  
"Ridiculous," he spat. "Lupin will be unmasked in a few hours without me here to make the potions."  
  
"I will make the potions, Severus." Snape looked at Theda appraisingly for a moment, then nodded. He knew she was able, he'd tested her potions himself. In the last two years she'd made more progress in the subject than most of his seventh year students had made in their lives.  
  
Theda looked at her watch. "You'd better go. Remus will be here any minute and he will be followed." She pulled out the small vial and the poly juice potion from her pockets, adding the hair from the vial to the flask and downing it quickly. She felt ill as she shrank to the size of a twelve- year-old girl. Muriel gasped again and Severus smirked appreciatively. Theda looked exactly like a young Ravenclaw by the name of Lizzy Garratt.  
  
"Momma told me not to send him an owl, because it might be dangerous, but I wanted to let him know about school!" she said, practicing her child- like voice.  
  
Muriel grinned unsteadily, shaking her head. "Perfect." Theda pulled out the invisibility cloak she'd borrowed from Moody to cover her bag and the potions ingredients that were already stacked neatly near the back of the cave. She winked at her friends, who disapparated abruptly, and sat at the mouth of the cave, looking out and hugging her knees. It wasn't hard to look as though she was as frightened as a little girl. After all, this was her first mission for the Order, and she was doing it in direct defiance of Dumbledore's orders. Truthfully, she was very near tears.  
  
Remus arrived silently and looked at the little girl sitting in the mouth of the cave with despair. He had no idea what she was doing there, but it was really very inconvenient, as he needed to replenish his supply of poly juice potion relatively quickly. A twig snapped somewhere behind him, and Theda looked up. "Daddy? Is that you? It's me, Lizzy." Theda hoped that Remus would remember Lizzy from his stint as a substitute for Muriel the year before.  
  
"Lizzy, honey, what are you doing here?" A thick-set man with dark curly hair strode out of the woods purposefully. She jumped up.  
  
"Daddy, Momma said I couldn't owl you anymore, and I just had to tell you all about school and...." he clapped a hand over her mouth before she could finish. He looked around nervously, and she knew he was getting the idea.  
  
"Lizzy, I came here tonight because I got a report that a secret meeting was going on," he improvised quickly. "Have you seen anyone near here tonight?" She shook her head, as his hand was still firmly over her mouth. He was starting to look angry. "What in the world would possess you to come here? I can't very well march you back up to the school can I?" he hissed, just loudly enough that he was sure whoever had followed him could hear. He removed his hand.  
  
"I'm sorry, Daddy. I just missed you so much, and - "  
  
"That's quite enough, Lizzy!" He was still whispering and looking warily around. "Obviously I will have to get you out of here. You must never come looking for me again!" He sounded utterly exasperated. "I can't take you back to your mother either. It will have to be enough to drop you off in Hogsmeade, surely you can get back to the school from there?" he asked scathingly. He looked up, as if noticing the cave for the first time.  
  
"Have you been in there?" His voice was gentler now.  
  
"Yes, I had walked so long that I was tired. I took a nap in there earlier." He shook his head as if disgusted. "And you saw no one?" Again, she shook her head, widening her eyes to make it appear she was afraid to get into more trouble. She watched as he lit his wand and searched the cave. When he reemerged his eyes were narrowed. "Perhaps my informant had the wrong night. This cave has footprints bigger than yours all through it. When I catch the filthy traitors – "he snarled, trailing off angrily. "Come on, we've got to get you back to Hogsmeade."  
  
Theda nodded sullenly and let him take her hand. They walked in silence for what seemed like forever, listening hard for any sign that they were being followed. "That was really very quick thinking," he whispered finally.  
  
"Thanks," she whispered back. "Severus left with Muriel. The things you need are under an invisibility cloak in the cave. I've brought you enough poly juice potion for tonight and tomorrow, as well as a flask of Wolfsbane potion. I'll be back to the cave tomorrow night to make more. Hopefully our little charade will give your associates good reason to stay away from the cave." She whispered the entire thing, not willing to have him know who she was just yet. He would find out soon enough. But for now, they walked in silence.  
  
Remus started as the hand in his suddenly became a bit larger, and the fingers thinner. He looked in surprise as the little girl became Theda again. "That was more of a risk than I thought Dumbledore would be willing to take," he said softly. In spite of himself he was glad to see her. Theda looked away, pursing her lips, and Remus understood immediately. Dumbledore hadn't authorized this at all.  
  
When they reached Hogsmeade, Remus rented a room so that they'd be able to talk privately. He closed the door quickly behind them and even cast a few privacy charms before they spoke. "Dumbledore will be irate."  
  
"It was the only way. Every other scenario saved Severus, but not you. If no one from the Order interferes, this will bring us both home safely, and give you a chance to sway more of the werewolves to join us." Remus knew he couldn't argue with that. Her stories had saved more lives in the last two years than anyone cared to think about. He crossed the room and took both her hands in his.  
  
"You risked too much for me," he said huskily. "You understand that if you'd been caught - " He shuddered, not wanting to imagine what would happen if her prophetic gift was forced to serve Voldemort, not to mention what her loss would do to him. He bent down and kissed the top of her head, his cheek lingering against her hair before he stepped back and met her eyes again. She dropped his hands abruptly and turned toward the window. "You can't come back to the forest. There are others capable of making the potions. Draco could do it. It's unlikely that anyone will go near that cave now that they think I'm watching it for traitors. It would be safe even if Severus came back." Remus kept his voice light to mask his disappointment at her small rejection.  
  
Theda looked at him. She hadn't thought of that. She didn't really want to go back to Hogwarts and face Dumbledore, but Remus was right, the cave wouldn't be searched now, so it wouldn't matter who was in it. She nodded. "I'll send Severus first thing in the morning." It was probably best for her not to work too closely with Remus anyway.  
  
Theda drank the rest of her poly juice potion and skipped down the stairs as the sun began to rise. They'd decided that it would be best if everyone in Hogsmeade saw her on her way back to the castle. Remus drank the potion she'd provided before apparating back to the site of the cave. He made a show of checking it again, feeling for the cloak to be sure it wasn't discovered in his absence.  
  
Argus Filch caught the dark haired second year student just as she entered the castle and marched her directly to the headmaster's office. Dumbledore listened to the man rant for a bit before holding up a hand and assuring him that the girl would be dealt with. When Filch had stomped back down the stairs, the Headmaster fixed her with a rather unfriendly stare.  
  
"Now, Theda, I believe you have a story for me." She explained the night's events in great detail, in spite of her continual yawning. She had not slept all night, and as it was nearing breakfast time, she was both tired and hungry. In the course of the story she felt the chair she was in shrinking, and sat up with a start. No, it was herself who was becoming larger. She shook her head, amazed that she'd been startled by that. She was so tired she'd forgotten that she'd taken the potion a second time.  
  
Finally, as the noise of students passing in the hallway signaled the beginning of breakfast, Dumbledore smiled. No harm had been done. He invited her to join him at the head table. She ate heartily between snatches of conversation with Muriel and Severus. The Potions Master was shocked at first that Remus had asked her to send him back, but then something funny seemed to pass behind his eyes. He agreed that it would be best if he went right after breakfast. He left as the last of the students made their way towards class.  
  
Sirius caught Theda on her way out of the hall and steered her into an empty classroom. "Are you all right? How's Remus."  
  
She smiled, thinking it likely that Muriel had told him that she was very uncomfortable about something. "I'm fine," she assured him. "And Remus is calm and in control of the situation, as usual."  
  
Sirius wasn't buying it. "That's not what I meant."  
  
"I know." She sighed. Always she had found it easier to make friends with men than women, but she wished she were having this conversation with Muriel or Hermione. "He held my hand as we walked, and he kissed the top of my head. That's all. You wouldn't think that would be enough to upset me but - " She couldn't finish. Tears had started to form in her eyes. She knew she sounded ridiculously childish. It would have been totally different if she'd felt nothing when he did those things. It was her own feelings that scared her more than anything. She just didn't know how to convey all that to Sirius, let alone to Remus.  
  
"But two years isn't long enough," he finished for her. She nodded miserably and he put his arms around her. She let him hold her, crying softly into his shirt.


	20. Chapter 19 A Bad Prank

**Remus vs. Venus: Round 4**

**Chapter 19 - A Bad Prank**

**December, 2009**  
  
Remus had had remarkable success with the werewolves. Over 180 now resided at Hogwarts, sharing an abandoned hallway that had once housed additional teachers. It had taken them another full year, but at last he and Severus were able to come home. Lance Garratt, who'd been living in the trunk Remus had borrowed from Alaster Moody, was handed over to the ministry. The papers carried the story that he had been caught recently, and Snape's memory charm had made sure that Garratt stuck to that story. Muriel took special care to comfort Lizzy, who was now in the middle of her third year and really did care for her father.  
  
Christmas at the Order of the Phoenix Headquarters was a festive occasion. Sirius started decorating the day Remus arrived, a week before Christmas. He was anxious to talk to his friend, but understood when Remus arrived in the kitchen at 7 AM, fixed a tray of tea, and headed back up the stairs. For the next two hours Sirius strode purposefully around the house, a cardboard box full of decorations floating behind him.  
  
Sirius and Remus could be heard from anywhere in the house that evening, singing Christmas carols at the top of their lungs, glad just to be around one another again. Remus had missed Ron and Hermione's wedding, but there was such a large album of pictures on hand, courtesy of Colin Creevy, that he got to see just about everything that had happened.  
  
Three days before Christmas, Sirius was awakened very early by a knock on his door. He threw on his robes and opened the door. Theda was waiting for him in the hallway. "Diagon Alley," she whispered, "remember?" He grimaced. He'd forgotten. She'd asked him last week to go with her, as she was still considered too important to be out without a guard, and he'd put her off until today.  
  
"Just a sec." He pulled his hair back quickly and they went to the fireplace together.  
  
By 10:00, Theda was getting frustrated. Dumbledore paid her a good bit for the work she did for the Order, and she'd had a wonderful time picking out gifts for Ron and Hermione, Muriel, Sirius, Draco, and Harry, the people she'd spent the most time with since joining the Order. But there was one person whose gift she just couldn't decide on. Sirius was no help at all, walking a step behind her with laughter in his eyes. He was a little annoyed when she insisted they stop by the Apothecary's and purchase several expensive ingredients to replenish Snape's stores. She sheepishly explained that the first 4 months Remus had been gone she'd continued to make the Wolfsbane potion in case he returned and needed it.  
  
Sirius laughed out loud at this. They were exiting the shop when they ran into the one person Theda wasn't ready to see. "Moony!" Sirius exclaimed, a little too brightly. Remus was looking from one of them to the other, confused. "Glad to see you, mate. Maybe you can do me a favor. Theda needs to finish shopping, and I need to get home before Mur arrives." He gave his friend a winning smile. The smile that had kept Remus from giving him detention for all his rotten stunts in school.  
  
"She can't stay without you, you know," he added. Out of the corner of his eye he could see Theda fighting back a smile. Remus seemed to notice too.  
  
"Sure, I've got a few more things to pick up myself," he said, eyeing his friend warily.  
  
Sirius stepped toward him, his back to Theda. "It's almost Christmas, mate," he whispered quietly. Remus understood. It was three days before Christmas, the anniversary of the day Theda had joined the Order. And she was here shopping, instead of in her room sleeping the day away. He nodded.  
  
"See you around dinner time, then Padfoot." He smiled as Sirius disapparated and he found himself looking at Theda. Her lips were pressed together in a thin line.  
  
"That great prat!" she said, only half-joking.  
  
"What did he do?"  
  
"He left me to shop with the only person I haven't found a present for yet!" Remus laughed and offered her his arm, surprised at his own boldness. "At least you can lead me to the right store!" She regretted this statement almost immediately as he led her into Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes.  
  
Snow began to fall as they made their way back toward the Leaky Cauldron, but Remus didn't mind. He felt content for the first time since he'd set eyes on Theda. They were talking and laughing as they went. It seemed to him as though they hadn't just spent a year and a half apart. He fell silent, thinking how odd that really was. She saw him staring off into the snow and smiled. "What are you thinking about?" she asked.  
  
His eyes refocused suddenly and he turned to her. For a moment he didn't speak, preferring to just watch as the snow settled on her hair. "I'm wondering why you haven't been this way before." She turned her head a bit in question and he clarified. "You never really seemed comfortable around me. Sirius said - " He stopped, not wanting her to realize that Sirius had told him almost everything they'd talked about.  
  
"It's all your fault, really," she said slowly. "Did you realize when you volunteered for all those assignments that almost every story I wrote for three solid years would be about you?" She smiled at his wide eyes. "I know you better now than I would have if you'd been home for all that time." At this he looked quickly to the ground and started walking again, his pace a bit faster. She ran at first to keep up, but decided that was silly, and let herself fall behind. She knew why he was upset. She'd just admitted that she'd known how he felt all this time. Maybe he would need some time to himself to think. She watched from a distance as he entered the archway back to the Leaky Cauldron.  
  
Remus was surprised, as he entered the tavern, to find that he was alone. 'No wonder I made her uncomfortable,' he thought savagely to himself. He sat down hard and ordered a fire whiskey, something he never drank. Somewhere in the back of his mind it occurred to him that he should go and find her, but he pushed the thought away. He finished his drink quickly, and looked around. She hadn't come in. He paid Tom and headed back outside.  
  
He spotted her at once, talking with an elderly witch outside the Apothecary's. The witch was trying to hand her something, but she was shaking her head. "Theda!" he shouted, running toward them. She turned, startled. At that moment the witch grabbed her hand and thrust the object into it. In an instant both women disappeared, and Remus was left, panting, alone in the snow.

Theda and Tonks were sitting on Theda's bed laughing when they heard Remus shouting frantically for Sirius. They'd told Sirius immediately when they got back, and he'd looked at them sharply for a moment, not sure if he really thought it was funny or not. "Oh come on, Sirius, he walked away and left her there. He deserves it." Tonks had said, grinning. She'd just gotten back from her own mission, and had been delighted to see Theda in Diagon Alley.  
  
In the end, Sirius' love of pranks made him agree to play along, at least for a while. The girls stifled their laughter as he rushed downstairs to see what was the matter with his friend.  
  
"Sirius, Theda's been kidnapped!" Remus said breathlessly.  
  
"What? Moony, I specifically asked you to keep an eye on her!" Remus glared at him. "Well, did you see who it was?"  
  
He shook his head. "She was old, but I didn't get a good look at her face." He looked absolutely dejected, and Sirius decided he just couldn't play this out.  
  
"Come here, Moony, there's something you should see."  
  
"What? No! We need to tell Dumbledore and start looking for her!" Remus was looking at him in disbelief. What could possibly be important enough that Sirius would think he'd want to see it right now?  
  
"Well, you should start with this." He was holding out a small object that looked suspiciously like the port key that had taken Theda. Remus narrowed his eyes and reached out for it. When his hand touched it, he and Sirius were instantly transported to Theda's bedroom, amid gales of laughter from the girls. He looked from them to Sirius and back again, and the truth sank in. Everyone's smiles faded as he stood there silently.  
  
His eyes seemed glued to Theda. "I deserved that," he said finally. Without another word he turned and walked out the door, leaving three very guilty- looking friends behind him.  
  
Tonks headed home shortly afterward, and Theda found Sirius sitting with Harry in the kitchen. They looked up as she entered. "He's got that door locked every way but sideways, and he's not answering when I knock," Sirius said. She nodded silently. Going back upstairs she stood outside the door to his room. She tried to apparate to the other side of the door, but it appeared he had set up charms against that as well. Thinking quickly, she tried to apparate into the closet that she remembered was almost a separate room. Maybe that wasn't covered by his spells. Sure enough she appeared amid several sets of robes and stepped quietly into his room. He was lying with his eyes open, staring at the ceiling.  
  
She took out her wand and lit several lamps against the coming darkness. He sat up, surprised, and she smiled. "You forgot to put an anti- apparation charm on your closet," she said gently. She put her wand away and sat down on the edge of his bed. "I'm sorry, Remus."  
  
"You have a very unfair advantage. You know exactly how I feel about you, but I have no way of knowing - " he trailed off, staring down. Her hands were resting on the bed. She waited for him to continue. "Will you ever be able to feel about me the way you did about him?" he asked, taking her left hand in his. She looked down. She almost hadn't realized that she was still wearing her wedding rings after all this time.  
  
"No," she answered truthfully. "I won't ever love you the way I loved him. But I also never loved him the way I love you." He looked up, his eyes full of pain and confusion, and hope. She smiled and started to explain. He had to understand this, it had taken her so long to get to the point where she was comfortable with it herself.  
  
"Remus, you've kissed your share of girls, haven't you?"  
  
He looked startled. "Yeah, I guess so."  
  
"Was each kiss the same?"  
  
He shook his head. "Truthfully I only ever kissed one girl," he admitted, sounding embarrassed. Theda looked at him thoughtfully, then slowly leaned toward him. Their lips met gently, and Remus closed his eyes, shocked, but willing it not to end. He hesitated a moment, then put his arms around her, pulling her closer. When she finally pulled away and met his eyes he thought he understood.  
  
It took them nearly five minutes to remove all the locking charms Remus had put on his door. Theda had concentrated her studies primarily on defense spells and potions, so she wasn't much help. She headed to her room while he went downstairs to join Sirius and Harry, both of whom were wearing annoyingly knowing expressions the minute they saw his face. "What?" he asked, but he was grinning and didn't sound very irritated at all.

_AN: Last round for Remus and Theda. Does Remus beat Venus or does Venus beat him??_


	21. Chapter 20 Harmless Talking

**Sirius vs. Venus: Match Point**

**Chapter 20 - Harmless Talking**

**March, 2010**

Muriel sipped her tea thoughtfully, looking over her cup at her best friend. "If you say that one more time, I'm going to turn you into something that can't talk." She kept her voice low and dangerous, but Severus Snape only smirked.  
  
"You've been complaining about Black ever since Peeves pulled him out of that archway. Why don't you just push him back in there so I can have some peace?" He set down his teacup and fixed her with a piercing stare, daring her to loose her cool.  
  
"I'm just frustrated that every time I've tried to talk to him in the last three years, he's gotten angry!" She stood abruptly and began to pace. "I can't mention you. It makes him mad. I can't mention a single thing that happened in the 15 years I was in America. It makes him mad. He doesn't want to talk about his childhood, and he flinches when anyone says 'Azkaban.' There just isn't anything left for us to talk about!" She sat back down hard, and Severus could tell as she stared fixedly at the table that she was fighting back tears.  
  
He sighed loudly, making her look up. He wondered for the thousandth time how he had gotten himself into this role. Here he was, about to tell this woman that he loved to go and -  
  
"Talk to Black about THAT!" He sounded exasperated, and Muriel couldn't blame him. He'd only been telling her that for the last year and a half, ever since she'd moved out of Order Headquarters and back to Hogwarts. She thought back to the day she'd packed up her room at Grimmauld Place. Sirius had hardly spoken to her. He'd been at the meeting when Dumbledore asked her to come and help protect the students, but she knew he thought she was only moving to be near Severus. "If you would tell him what you just told me - "  
  
"It would only make him angry, Sev," she said wearily, cutting him off. "Don't you remember how you felt when I accused you of closing off your mind? You were furious."  
  
"No, I was furious that Lupin interrupted me before I could explain." Severus yawned delicately and Muriel raised an eyebrow. Each Sunday night she and Severus sat in his office having tea, a tradition that had started the night she had first returned to Hogwarts to teach. And like that first night, they often stayed up much too late. Her eyes found the clock near the door. It was 2:30 AM, and she yawned as well.  
  
"All right, I've had enough. I'm going to bed." She gave her friend a quick hug, and pulled away toward the door, but was surprised when he grabbed her wrist.  
  
"No, you aren't!" For the first time, he realized that she really wasn't ever going to listen to him. He took matters into his own hands. Before she could resist, he'd pulled her over to the fire.  
  
"Number 12 Grimmauld Place!" he said forcefully, throwing a handful of floo powder into the fireplace and swinging her roughly into the green flames.  
  
Muriel stumbled out of the fireplace into the sitting room at the Order of Phoenix Headquarters, covered in soot, and with a large, bloody lump on her forehead where she'd hit the mantle. She reached up a hand and touched the spot gingerly, swearing softly when she saw the blood.  
  
She made her way to the kitchen to wash the bruise, and was startled to see that Sirius was still up, sitting alone at the kitchen table, a bottle of Ogden's Fire Whisky in front of him. He was fingering something that he quickly thrust into a pocket when he noticed her.  
  
"Mur? What happened? What are you doing here?"  
  
"Taking a friend's advice whether I like it or not," she said humorlessly, stumbling toward the sink. She caught her reflection in the metal faucet and groaned. She was filthy. Carefully she wiped her face as Sirius waited impatiently for a better answer.  
  
She sat down across the table from him. "Did you do all that damage yourself?" she asked, pointing to the nearly empty bottle. He didn't answer, so she summoned herself a glass and poured a little, drinking it quickly.  
  
"You got me started," he said finally, "seventh year." Then he smiled, remembering. "We had a really good time, but I can't remember how I got home. Come to think of it, I can't remember leaving the Hogs Head at all." His brow furrowed and Muriel looked at him sadly. "Do you remember what we did after we left there?"  
  
"That's not what I came here to talk about, Black," she said, scowling. He dropped his smile.  
  
"I wanted to talk to you about the future, not the past. But first," she said, holding up a hand to stop him from jumping in, "I do want to remind you of something that happened a long time ago." She frowned, trying to remember his exact words.  
  
Sirius nodded, but didn't interrupt. He could feel his heart racing. 'Why is she here?' he wondered. He knew somewhere along the line he had messed up, and he silently admonished himself not to repeat it if this was his second chance.  
  
"Do you remember the train ride home after our 5th year? You overheard most of what Severus said, didn't you?" His eyes narrowed and he nodded. She sighed softly. Every time he heard her talk about Severus he got angry. She did her best to ignore it and continued. "I called him on some things he was doing that were standing in the way of our relationship and he got mad. You decided later that summer that you weren't going to 'repeat the slimy git's mistakes.' Do you remember?" Sirius relaxed and smiled, nodding again.  
  
"I want you to remember that very well, now that I'm going to do the same thing to you." At this, he sat up a bit straighter. He hadn't been blocking her at all. Well, he wasn't overly fond of his memories of Azkaban, so he was keeping them safely locked away, but other than that, he'd been entirely open with her. He was on the point of telling her so, but she held up a hand to silence him, and he sat back again to listen.  
  
She told him just what she'd said to Severus earlier. Long before she had finished she knew it had done no good. He was furious, as she had known he would be. "Well, since you can't talk to ME about anything, why don't you just go HOME and talk with Snivellous?" he hissed.  
  
"Because he's driving me crazy." Sirius was surprised at the blandness of this statement. She used to hex him when she heard him utter that insulting name. In that moment his anger faded. "When I try to explain to him how I feel, he says I ought to talk to you about it." She stood up. Suddenly she just didn't have the emotional drive it took to keep this up. She turned in the doorway. "Honestly, I wish one of you would decide that you want me, instead of pushing me off on the other," she said softly. Then she ran to the fireplace and was gone.  
  
Sirius pulled something small out of his pocket and set it down on the table before him. Here he was, alone again. Why hadn't he kept his mouth shut?  
  
Muriel appeared in the fireplace of her own quarters, her head pounding furiously, and tears spilling from her eyes. She collected herself, then went to wake up Madam Pomfrey. If this headache was any indication, Severus had given her a mild concussion with his little scheme tonight and for that he was going to pay.

Muriel faced the students in her first class of the day, exhausted from the night before, but well prepared. This was her N.E.W.T. class, 6th and 7th years only. She watched as they paired off and began casting hexes at one another. Shield charms. Sometimes she felt like she'd spent her entire life teaching people to cast them properly. She walked among them, and several of them noticed that she was the only person in the room who was NOT being hit by the badly deflected charms. It was a double lesson period, which was good, since this group needed all the help they could get.  
  
She had started teaching her first year students some simple shields as well. No sense in waiting until N.E.W.T. level for that, she knew what went on in the halls of Hogwarts, and she knew the poor kids needed that spell! But she expected the older students to be able to deflect with a certain amount of finesse that just seemed to be out of their reach. Finally she hit upon an idea. Severus had only a single period this morning, and his class should be finished by now. She cast the Legilimens spell quietly.  
  
'Sev, busy?' 

'No.'

'Dueling Demonstration?'

'Coming.'  
  
They had discovered the ability to use the Legilimens curse as a way to communicate when they were very young. It didn't let them say much, just impressions, really, but it got the job done. She knew that normal people couldn't use it that way, it was only because of her despised gift that this worked at all, but lately she had found it to be very convenient. As much as she hated her ability at times, she couldn't complain about this aspect of it.  
  
When she heard his footsteps in the hallway, she called for the class to stop their duels. With a wave of her wand she set three long tables in a row in the center of the room, pushing the rest back up against the walls. The class gasped as the tables passed right through them, but became solid again as they stacked on top of one another.  
  
"I have decided that a little demonstration is in order," she said as Severus walked into the room. His mind was unguarded for a moment and her eyes widened at the memory he was projecting to her unwittingly. "Let me introduce my assistant, Professor Snape. He knows a tiny little bit about dueling and has sportingly agreed to help me." The class was uncannily silent. She smirked as Severus blanched at her words, then had to fight back a giggle as his eyes narrowed and his mind closed with an almost audible SNAP. She would have to remember to tease him later about Lockhart.  
  
"Today we will be working on more than just CASTING shield charms. It is important in combat that you know how to deflect curses properly. It doesn't do to have them hitting your allies rather than your enemies. Please concentrate on the tilt and angle at which we place our charms. For the first exchange, we will each target a female. We will pause to perform the counter curses, then we will each target a male." She looked at Severus, who had taken his position at the other end of the tables as she spoke. "Slowly at first so they can see what we're doing."  
  
The students shifted a bit, and Muriel smiled. They were mingling together more thoroughly. She winked at Severus as their wands came up. Then she counted.  
  
They had each chosen a harmless curse that changed the color of a person's hair. A 6th year Ravenclaw had been Mur's target, while Severus had chosen a 7th year Slytherin.  
  
When Muriel turned to perform the counter curses, she caught a movement out of the corner of her eye, and quickly set up another shield charm to bounce Severus' curse back at him. He dodged it physically and laughed a bit, making the students around them even more uncomfortable. They had never seen Professor Snape laugh.  
  
"You didn't bow to end the duel, Professor Deesia," he said wickedly. "Surely you have been teaching the students proper etiquette when it comes to these things?" Muriel felt herself flush.  
  
"You are, of course, correct, Professor. It was my mistake." She bowed to Severus, performed the counter curses, and stood ready once again.  
  
When they'd cast and deflected their second curses, Muriel found herself acting quickly to set up a shield charm in front of a young woman. The boy who had been standing in front of her had wisely ducked, causing Severus' deflected curse to miss. "Shield charms can also be cast to protect your allies from attack. It takes a good deal more speed, however. I suggest that the best way to practice this is in the hallways." She ignored Severus as he raised an eyebrow.  
  
"Your project for the week is this: Each young lady will try to cast at least one curse on Professor Snape in the hallways between classes." She waved her wand in the direction of the blackboard and a completely unfamiliar incantation appeared as she continued. "The young men will be responsible for protecting him. I will keep track of how many curses land, since only I know the counter curse. Points to the ladies for curses, points to the men for blocks, which Professor Snape will keep track of for me. Points will be deducted for any student hit by a stray spell, so deflect them well." She was smiling at Severus sweetly and could tell by the look on his face that her revenge for the night before was complete. So she went just a bit farther.  
  
"Next week, we will switch. The men will hex Professor Snape and the women will protect him. Now if you have no questions, class is dismissed."  
  
Severus waited until the whispering and giggling students had filed out of the classroom. With a flick of his wand, the door closed and locked behind them. Muriel was grinning impishly at him, and he meant to smirk but all he could manage was a half-hearted smile.  
  
"If you found that to be a suitable reward, I can only assume that things didn't go so well last night?" he asked finally, guiding the tables and chairs back into position.  
  
"He told me to come and talk to you if I needed someone to talk to." Her voice was muffled, and Severus turned to see that she was sitting at her desk with her head in her hands. He pulled up a chair and sat across from her, taking her hands in his to force her to look up.  
  
"He'll come around," he said. He knew that Black still loved her, he'd heard him say it. But in his heart he hoped the prideful prat would just say he didn't want her anymore. Maybe then she'd be free to love him instead. For a minute he wondered why Black couldn't just have stayed dead, but then shook himself out of it, remembering the pain his supposed death had caused Muriel. He'd sworn to protect her from that, and somehow, some way, he was going to do it.  
  
"You still deserve whatever those students give you for sending me over there to make a fool out of myself!" She rose to stomp out, but was brought up short before she reached the door.  
  
"Did you even ask him what he was doing awake at that hour?"  
  
She turned back to face him. "I assumed that you had it all planned and told him to be awake. How else could you have been sure he'd be up?"  
  
Severus shook his head. "He never sleeps, according to Lupin. Come on, let's get to lunch before your students have a chance to ambush me."  
  
Muriel smiled, but couldn't help but wonder why Sirius never slept. Was he having nightmares about Azkaban? She wouldn't be surprised, since he'd bound up those memories tighter than a book with two spines. She was brought back to reality when the first of her students tried to hex Severus. Another student deflected it clumsily and she had to cast her own shield to protect herself from the curse. Maybe this hadn't been such a good idea. She made a mental note not to walk the halls with Severus for at least the next two weeks.  
  
After the last class of the day, she retreated to her upstairs office. She hardly ever went in there, preferring to work in Severus' office for the company. Today, however, he was already in his quarters, avoiding the hallways while the students were still awake. Her arms were full, but she turned to pull the door shut behind her.  
  
"Hello Mur." Muriel dropped everything she was carrying, causing the door to fly open again. Several scrolls bounced down the stairs. She swore loudly, then summoned them back.  
  
"What are you doing here? I thought you didn't want to talk to me." She threw her things down on the already cluttered desk in front of Sirius as he got up out of her chair.  
  
"I'm sorry," he said immediately. She closed her eyes, waiting. "I never meant for you to feel like I didn't want you."  
  
Muriel turned away and walked toward the window. She could tell that he was sincere, but she was wary. "How else can I feel?" she whispered. "If I can't talk to you about what happened when we were apart, what else is there? We've always been apart. Severus knows more about what happened to me in America than you do." She felt the anger rising in him, and was surprised to feel it in herself as well. She turned suddenly.  
  
"DO YOU THINK I WANT IT THAT WAY?" she yelled. "The only reason for it is that you didn't want to know. You'd cut me off, change the subject, or just get so angry that I couldn't stand to be in the room with you!"  
  
Sirius' eyes were wide. It hadn't occurred to him that his frustration at not being part of her life for so long was affecting her this way.  
  
She had turned away again. "Mur, I don't mean to be angry all the time. There's been a lot for me to deal with since Azkaban." His voice was soft, but she could feel his eyes boring into the back of her head.  
  
"Why were you awake so late last night? Remus told Sev that you never sleep anymore."  
  
Sirius thrust down any negative feelings he felt for Snape and concentrated on her question instead. "I was thinking about you," he said softly. He joined her at the window, a hand on her shoulder. "I was looking at this." He held a little green box in front of her.  
  
"Where did you get that?" she whispered, not turning to face him.  
  
"Your father gave it back to me just after you left. He told me that you'd left it at the house without a note."  
  
"THAT'S A LIE! He took it from me. He promised that he'd give you the letter I sent with him to explain!" Muriel gasped for air, suddenly feeling ill. "HOW COULD HE DO THAT?!"  
  
"Shhh," Sirius said, turning her around and putting his arms around her. "I know. I found it all out later." He held her close until her breathing became even again.  
  
"How did you find out?" She asked finally.  
  
"The year before I escaped Azkaban he was caught. He talked in his sleep." Sirius knew that it hurt her to hear this, no matter how angry she was with her father. The Aurors she'd talked with had told her that he'd died, they hadn't told her that he'd died in Azkaban. His next admission was going to hurt her even more.  
  
"I found out where you were, too. But when I got out I never came to look for you." He could feel the tears starting in his own eyes now. "Please understand that I was hurt. From where I stood, it looked like you'd chosen Snape over me after all." He thought back on the night they'd spent in the woods, the night Snape had proposed to her. He had been so sure after that, so confident in her love. He wondered briefly if he would ever get that feeling back.  
  
"You were there?" she asked quietly. Sirius wasn't surprised. It was time that she knew this anyway.  
  
"Yeah. James and the traitor and I came running when you yelled. We heard what he said. Then he disappeared, and I knew you'd chosen me." He looked into her eyes. She was still crying. "When you let him go, it was like you'd changed your mind."  
  
"I'm sorry," she whispered, putting her head on his shoulder. "I wish I could go back and change it, but I can't." Her breathing was becoming ragged again.  
  
"You would have done the same thing again. It - It was the right thing to do." Sirius swallowed hard, and hugged her, but she pulled away.  
  
"I would NOT do the same thing again. If I could do it over I'd stun Papa and turn him in instead!" she spat.  
  
Sirius couldn't help but smile. That was more like the Muriel he knew. He took her hands in his, placing the small box between them. "I love you, you know," he whispered.  
  
The door to the office banged open and Severus entered, irate. "MUR! ONE OF YOUR SEVENTH YEARS HAS - " He stopped speaking abruptly as they turned to look at him. Sirius, although annoyed by the intrusion, couldn't help but laugh. Severus' face was a delicate shade of violet and his hair was midnight blue, and falling in ringlets around his face. "I apologize for the intrusion," he said formally. Then he winked at Muriel and added, "I'll just go hide in my quarters until you have time to fix this."  
  
"Oh, for Merlin's sake, come here," she said, dropping the box into her pocket before he could turn to go. She went to the desk to get her wand and returned him to his normal color. "Now get lost, Sev," she said firmly. He didn't need telling twice.  
  
"Good timing that man has," Sirius said ruefully. He'd waited half his life for this, so he wasn't surprised that Snape had messed it up.  
  
"He hasn't messed up anything," Mur said playfully, answering his thoughts. Sirius was leaning heavily on the windowsill, and she walked over, smiling. "Where were we?"  
  
"Nearly here," he said, reaching out to put his arms around her waist and pull her close. He kissed her softly, and she felt her body respond. She stepped closer still.  
  
"Sirius," she breathed, pulling away slowly. "Weren't you wondering last night why you couldn't remember what happened after we left the Hog's Head in our seventh year?"  
  
"Tell me about it later," he mumbled, bending down to kiss her again. She let him, but pulled back again too soon for him. "What is it?" he asked, curious what would distract her so much.  
  
She was giving him a very sad smile. "The reason you don't remember is that I woke up first." She watched his eyes widen. He blinked at her, as if making sure she was real. "We'd had a lot to drink, and I was young, and embarrassed," she explained quietly.  
  
"I want to remember that," he whispered breathlessly. She pulled a small flask out of her robes and handed it to him. He drank it silently, his eyes never leaving hers.  
  
"Did you know that this office has a passageway that leads to my quarters?" she asked, conversationally. Sirius could see a smile playing around the corners of her lips. He let his eyes roam then, and saw it. He walked over to the fireplace and pressed a lever in the beak of a marble raven that sat on the mantle. The pillar beside the fireplace rotated outward. A moment later, it rotated noisily back into place and the empty office fell silent.


	22. Chapter 21 About Time

**Sirius vs. Venus: Match Point**

**Chapter 21 - About Time **

**March, 2010**

She led him by the hand up the narrow staircase that linked her office and her quarters. Halfway there, he stumbled backward into the wall and closed his eyes with a groan that couldn't be mistaken for pain, pulling her toward him. Muriel buried her face in his shoulder, trying to ward off the tears she felt starting as he held her.

"I was your first," he whispered, his voice filled with awe as he remembered.

"You were the only," she confirmed. His eyes snapped wide open and locked with hers for just an instant before they fell closed again. She could feel his reaction to the memory pressing hard against her thigh as she closed her own eyes to wait.

His arms tightened slowly around her waist as his breathing became faster. Then suddenly they dropped lower and he pulled her against him with another groan, burying his face in her neck and shivering. A few moments later she felt the moisture seeping through his robes and into hers. She pulled away, forcing herself to look him in the eye in spite of the threatening tears that she hoped he wouldn't notice.

"Do you have any idea what you've done?" he whispered softly, reaching out a gentle hand to touch her face. She recoiled as if he'd slapped her, biting her lip in a useless attempt to stop the tears from spilling down her face. Then she ran for her quarters. Sirius furrowed his brow, not sure exactly what had gone wrong there, then followed, catching her easily as she stumbled through the door.

"Mur, wait," he said, grabbing her elbow to steady her. She shook him off easily, so when he reached for her a second time, he took both of her arms and pushed her gently against the nearest wall. "WAIT!"

Muriel cast her eyes to the floor, guilt overcoming her as the silence lengthened. Finally she spoke, her voice wavering with suppressed sobs. "Of course I know what I did! Do you think I would have spent 5 years on that bloody potion if I didn't already feel guilty?"

Surprise and gratitude flashed in his mind before he settled back on the amazement he'd been feeling a moment before. "You don't understand." He cupped her cheeks in his hands and lifted her face to force her to meet his eyes. "You've given me the only memory I have that the dementors didn't corrupt. Everything else that happened to us during that time – EVERYTHING, Mur – it's all wrong in my head. They changed things, little things that I might never have noticed if I hadn't gotten out."

Her expression was confused, and her breath was still coming in gasps. Sirius snapped his fingers and spoke to the house elf that appeared without turning to look at it. "Bring us tea, and some fire whiskey." The elf bobbed silently and disappeared again as if this was a perfectly normal request. Sirius led Mur toward the fireplace. He lit the fire and pulled her down to sit on the rug in front of it.

When the house elf returned Muriel whispered, "Thanks," and ignored her tea in favor of the alcohol, not noticing Sirius' amused expression until she handed him the bottle. "I still don't understand," she said quietly.

"Mur, tell me what you remember about Easter holiday our 7th year."

She understood immediately that he meant the night she'd kissed Remus and told him the story warily. "I only did it because when our lips touched I knew I'd be able to speak inside his head," she finished quietly. "I just wanted to reassure him that he wasn't the monster he thought he was."

Sirius nodded grimly. "I notice you don't say anything about him kissing you back," he prodded quietly.

"That's because he didn't. Remus is no fool. If he'd tried to kiss me back you and I would both have hexed him and it wouldn't have been very pleasant. He looked frightened enough as it was." She was looking at him strangely, still not quite understanding.

"When I think back on that, the logic side of my brain knows that it happened just as you say. But the visual I get is totally different. I see his hand in your hair, pulling you to him. The frightened look I know he gave me, looks triumphant to me." He fell silent, staring at the rug between them, and Muriel became very uncomfortable.

"Sweet Merlin, no wonder you're always angry," she whispered finally. "I suppose it's only worse with Severus."

He looked up sharply, a hard look in his eyes and a deep frown on his lips. But he didn't answer. She could feel the anger coming off him more certainly than she could feel the heat of the fire beside them.

"Tell me," she whispered.

"Which one?" he asked dryly, taking a long swig from the bottle which appeared to be nearly empty already. She wondered fleetingly how much of that she'd had. She shook her head and he continued. "If I remember us dancing, he always pulls you away, though I know he never did. If I remember kissing you on the train, you always apologize to him when he appears. Sometimes you even leave with him. There were times when I could swear he stood over me in my sleep and accused me of trying to kill you on the Quidditch pitch our fifth year."

Sirius voice fell to an anguished whisper as he continued. "And sometimes - sometimes it's him that I have to hex outside the Slytherin common room instead of Avery."

The mirror over the fireplace cracked deafeningly and a large piece of glass slid gracefully down to shatter on the floor. Sirius barely managed to get them both out of harms way before it hit the floor, spraying the entire room with glass shards.

"Sorry," she whispered. "I haven't done that for a long time, but –"

A frantic knocking at the door made her stop.

"Mur? What the bloody hell's going on in there?" Severus, whose rooms were just down the hall, had heard the crash and come to investigate.

"Somebody mentioned Avery, Sev. Go away," she hollered.

They heard him swear, as if the last thing he wanted was for Muriel to have to think about Avery, but they didn't hear his footsteps. Sirius had backed up until he was against the wall, his eyes closed as he tried desperately not to hate the man standing outside. Mur smiled wanly at his effort. It was far more than he'd ever tried to do before.

"I'll kill him myself when I get the chance, Severus," she said sternly when she realized he wasn't leaving. "Now, please, SOD OFF!"

To her great surprise, she heard both men laugh shortly, and finally Severus' footsteps could be heard heading toward his own quarters. With a flick of her wand, she repaired the mirror, which grouched at her angrily until she threatened to disenchant it. Then she turned to Sirius.

"If you can't trust the old memories, will you let me help you make new ones?" she asked quietly, pulling the ring box he'd given her earlier out of her robe pocket. He stared at it intensely for a moment, then took it from her. She waited as he opened the box and took out the ring. On impulse, he threw the box into the fire.

"I don't ever want to see it in the box again," he whispered, putting the ring on her finger just as he had all those years ago. They both grinned and Muriel threw him a wink before scooping up the jar of floo powder on the mantle.

"Albus Dumbledore's office," she said quickly, throwing a handful into the flames.

The headmaster looked calmly toward the green flames as they flickered around the head of his Defense Against the Dark Arts professor. "Good evening Muriel," he said, unfazed by her rather uncharacteristic appearance. He couldn't recall her ever talking to him of her own accord, unless it was Order business.

"Good evening. I was wondering if you're busy this Saturday? I have a favor to ask."

Dumbledore took in the seemingly permanent grin she wore before answering. "I believe my entire day is free." His eyes twinkled as her grin became a bit more mischievous.

"I'd like you to call an Order meeting for 2:00 Saturday afternoon."

"And where will this meeting be held?"

Muriel took a deep breath, knowing that Sirius could hear her, and quickly said, "Tell them to floo or apparate to the Casa de la Fontana Affascinato." She immediately heard Sirius begin laughing behind her. The headmaster only nodded solemnly.

"I see. And when would you like me to make this announcement?"

"Now would be fine, Headmaster," she replied, smirking. "And thank you."

As her head disappeared from his fireplace, the aging headmaster let out a relieved sigh. This had been a long time coming. Now if he could just marry off his Potions Master, he was sure that Hogwarts would go back to the dull, uneventful place it had been for those few short years AFTER the marauders and BEFORE Fred and George Weasley.

He approached the mirror that hung between his two largest bookcases and tapped the frame lightly with his wand. "There will be a formal meeting of the Order of the Phoenix this Saturday at 2 pm at the Casa de la Fontana Affascinato," he said, trying not to smile or twinkle so he wouldn't give the surprise away.

Muriel and Sirius exchanged an amused glance as Dumbledore's face appeared in the mirror over her mantle. He took both of her hands in his and leaned down slowly to kiss her. Her eyes had just closed when Dumbledore fell silent and they heard an unmistakable whoop of joy from down the hall.

Muriel stumbled backwards laughing as Sirius' eyes flew open and an odd look of comprehension crossed his face. "Was that - - - Snape?" he asked incredulously. Muriel nodded, unable to speak, although her confirmation was hardly needed. An instant later they heard a door swing open and an oddly jovial voice sliced through the silence of the hallway.

"It's about bloody TIME, Black." The door slammed shut again, and Muriel, laughing still harder, sat down hard on the bed and doubled over, clutching her sides.

Sirius watched her laugh for a moment before his own happiness overcame his shock at Snape's unexpected approval. Then he crossed the room to where she sat and put a hand under her chin, lifting her eyes to meet his intense gaze. Tears had streaked her face more than once tonight, but her eyes weren't yet red. Her face was flushed as she smiled up at him. He watched the smile recede from her lips slowly until her expression matched his own.

He moved so slowly that she wasn't sure at first that she hadn't imagined it. His arm encircled her waist and lifted her easily, setting her further back on the bed. His eyes never left hers, and when he moved forward to kiss her she leaned away, smirking.

"Tease," he whispered, grinning. Then, in a flurry of movement, his lips captured hers, pushing her soundly into the bed as her arms came up to hold him.


	23. Chapter 22 Pleasure

_AN: Here's another chapter that can, and should, be skipped entirely by my younger readers. It is non-essential to the plot, I promise, and you won't miss the wedding._ _Rating change this chapter only: Expect R_

**Chapter 22 - Pleasure**

**March, 2010**

Muriel had lost herself in his kiss almost instantly, so she was surprised when he pulled away abruptly. "I can't do this," he said heatedly, retreating to the couch in front of the fire.

Muriel sat up warily. Since when did Sirius Black NOT want to have sex? She remembered clearly from their years of dating that he'd been a perfect gentleman, neither asking nor assuming. But he hadn't been restrained about imagining it. She had discreetly ignored his thoughts, right up until Easter holiday of their final year. Concentrating now, she found that his feelings were both fearful and guilty. Something was very wrong.

She walked silently to him and knelt in front of the couch. His hands were covering his face. She parted his legs gently and leaned toward him. He let his arms fall around her instinctively and held her close, her head on his chest. "I'm sorry," he whispered, resting his cheek on her hair.

'For what?" The obvious answer was for leaving her alone on the bed, but she thought it must be more than that. The panic he felt when she asked proved that she was right.

"What's wrong, Sirius?" she asked gently when he didn't answer.

He coughed a little into his hand and pulled away again. "It isn't just affecting memories. Sometimes while things are happening I see them wrong, too. It's happened before."

She waited for him to continue, thinking hard. If something was affecting things as they happened, then that meant that some part of the dementor was still with him, somehow. "How close did you come to receiving the kiss?" she asked suddenly. Her words were clipped and businesslike, but worry permeated the room.

After another long silence, he answered, "I could feel its face on mine." His voice sounded hollow, as though just the memory was enough to take his soul away.

Muriel rocked back on her heels, staring into space and biting her lip, unaware of the slight smile her expression brought to Sirius' face. "Do you trust me?" she asked finally.

"No," came his answer. She looked up quickly, and he clarified. "It's hard to trust anyone when I don't know if I'm really seeing them, or some hallucination of them."

She nodded, trying not to feel hurt, and wondering what exactly he'd seen a moment ago. A few beats of uncomfortable silence passed, then she settled on what to do. She handed him her wand. "I want you to cast the Legilimens curse on me. According to Severus, I will be able to see into your mind just as easily as if I'd cast it on you. It has the added benefit of letting you see everything in my head as well."

"How will this help?" Sirius really didn't want her to see what had just happened. He knew, empirically, that she had wanted him to kiss her, but he'd seen her pushing him away, struggling against him as though he was hurting her. He didn't want to relive that kind of rejection.

"I think the dementor left something inside you when it found that it didn't have time to take anything. If there's something in your head that doesn't belong there, I can find it." She spoke confidently, though she'd never tried to do any such thing before. Sirius closed his eyes briefly, then opened them and cast the spell.

The first thing Muriel thought of was their kiss, letting him feel all the joy that she'd felt when he'd kissed her. She suspected what he'd experienced and wanted him to know that it hadn't really been that way. She felt his body relax, then tense again. The image was changing in her mind, now, as well.

She doggedly ignored it and sifted through his memories carefully, trying to determine where the errant thought was coming from. Distantly she noticed that Sirius had joined her on the floor; that he was sobbing into her hair. She tried to force some sense into his head, ignoring the visions that kept intruding.

'Sirius, kiss me again,' she thought, 'it isn't real!' Her consciousness was buried deep in his mind now, but she focused long enough to make sure he'd kissed her. The vision had to be maintained, or she'd never find where it was coming from. She knew it didn't belong to Sirius. Since their fourth year of school she'd been able to pick his thoughts out, even in the Great Hall during mealtimes. No, this thought came from someone else entirely.

And then she found him. A small, but determined, bit of darkness lodged near Sirius' memories of the night he first met Harry in the shrieking shack. Everett Donovan. The name flashed through her mind, momentarily blocking even the vile visions he was projecting. A moment later, she'd made sure he was gone for good, and opened her eyes.

She was lying on the rug before the fire. Sirius was above her, his face only inches from hers. She was suddenly aware that his tears had soaked her face as well as his. "He's gone," she whispered, though he already knew. Her wand was still in his hand, and he was breathing heavily. "A follower of Grindelwald. He received the kiss over half a century ago. The dementor must have put a piece of his soul into you that night."

She might have told him more if he hadn't leaned down and pressed his lips to hers again. She felt his emotions far more clearly now, with the spell still between them, than she ever had. Azkaban had followed him, even after his escape, and now he was finally, truly, free. And he was going to make the most of it.

She smiled against his lips at his determination, her hands already unbuttoning his shirt. He paused, feeling her desire for the first time without the input of someone else's twisted thoughts. It was incredible to think that after all this time she still wanted him this way. He shrugged off his shirt, not noticing where it landed. Then he balked a little as she smirked up at him and summoned his wand.

She muttered a spell to undress them both, then quickly set his wand aside and entwined her fingers with his, holding her wand between their hands. He understood perfectly. She wanted the spell to stay. In fact, he understood everything she wanted, in detail, and unconsciously returned her smirk. He had every intention of giving it to her.

Muriel couldn't help but think how soft his kisses were, how silky his lips. Hearing such thoughts only spurred Sirius to give her more. He trailed his lips over her breasts slowly, feeling her impatience. She, in turn, could hear his plans for teasing her even as they ran through his head. Deciding to force the issue, she let her hand, which had been stroking his back, wander down to pay its attentions to someplace more likely to illicit a response.

Predictably, Sirius growled and kissed her fiercely. When he pulled away, she smiled up at him. "I love you, Black," she said quietly, her mouth twisting into the impertinent smirk he remembered so well. He saw the irony she was pointing out. How many years had she called him that? Now it would finally be her name, too.

Leaning heavily on his elbow, he put a hand to her cheek, still as soft as he remembered from their youth. "Good, because if you think you're getting away from me this time, you need to think again." They both grinned for a moment before he lowered his lips to hers. She could feel him poised to enter her, probably the only sensation that could have distracted her from his lips, which were now sucking gently on her neck. She squirmed teasingly, which only made him growl again in mock frustration.

He entered her slowly, nothing like the first time, and she felt every motion. He looked into her eyes with an intensity that might have caused her to look away at any other time. Now, however, she returned his gaze unflinchingly, the corners of her lips still upturned. His motions quickened, and finally she closed her eyes. It had been an emotional evening, and she felt the tears starting, whether for joy at finding him again, or for pain at the years they'd lost, she didn't know.

Then his hand, so much rougher than the hand of the privileged rich boy he'd once been, was wiping her tears away. "No Mur, no more tears," he whispered hoarsely, giving away the depth of his own emotion. She nodded, then lifted her head to kiss him again.

When he finally lay beside her, running his fingers through her hair as their breathing slowed, he ended the spell and put her wand aside. Muriel turned to him and lay in his arms, not ready for the night to be over, but knowing that her mind was overworked from the struggle with Donovan. She had to sleep.

He watched her, remembering the memory she'd given back to him and the ones they'd made since then. Everything seemed right. Maybe he hadn't noticed the changes in his memory in Azkaban because they hadn't begun until he was nearly caught. "You were my salvation again tonight, Mur," he whispered, thinking she was likely asleep.

"You've been my salvation for the last 25 years. It's only fair." Her eyes opened slowly, a smile creeping across her sleepy features.

"What do you mean?"

"The stairs in our first year, the block of ice in our third. Then fourth year you and Potter's invisibility cloak saved me from Avery. A place to stay that summer when I'm pretty sure Riddle was staying with Papa." She fell silent for a moment before continuing. "And when I nearly killed myself in America because I couldn't take it anymore, you saved me."

Sirius sat up abruptly, pulling her with him, cradling her in arms like the fragile child she'd never had the chance to be. "Me?" He wondered if maybe she was more asleep than she appeared.

"Only a few days before I had planned it, I found out you were innocent. Everyone else thought you were insane when you laughed like that. They didn't know you. Remus should have known."

"The day you turned me into a duck," he said, understanding. "I laughed because it was so ridiculously stupid that the girl I wanted to date was about to hex me, for hurting a girl I'd never meant to date, by kissing a girl I'd never intended to kiss. You knew all that?" Sirius was still whispering, and Mur's eyes had fallen shut again.

"Eventually, I did. So when I heard that you'd laughed, I knew you couldn't have done it. You couldn't have –"her voice, barely a whisper before, ceased entirely, and she snuggled closer to him. Sirius smiled. It was good to know that SOMEONE, no matter how far away, had believed in his innocence. He leaned back carefully against the couch, his arms still around her, and studied her face in the firelight.

They spent half the night sleeping in front of the fire before Sirius carried her back to her bed. He held her as she woke briefly, then fell back to sleep, his mind already running ahead to all the things that had to happen before Saturday.


	24. Chapter 23 The Casa de la Fontana Affas...

_AN: Here's the wedding you've all been waiting for.  Sorry it's been such a long time coming, but no matter how I tried to bribe them, they just wouldn't get together!!  Stubborn prats.  Anyway, without further ado:_

**Sirius vs. Venus: Match Point**

**Chapter 23 - Casa de la Fontana Affascinato**

**March, 2010**

"He's going to kill you." Severus whispered worriedly to Muriel over breakfast. Sirius had left this morning and Muriel had just informed her best friend of a plan that required his assistance.

"Who, Sirius or Lucius?"

"Either. Both."

She kept her face neutral. "I owled Macnair, too."

"For Merlin's sake, you can't really expect them to attend."

"They're my FRIENDS."

"They're the enemies of your friends as well."

Severus' mild voice was infuriating her far more than the situation itself. She was about to hiss a scathing retort when McGonagal entered the hall and made her way over quickly.

"Congratulations, Muriel," she gushed. She had received a wedding invitation years ago, as Severus had, and she'd recognized the location of Saturday's meeting and pieced together what was happening.

"Thanks," Mur said, her voice a little strained. McGonagal looked hesitatingly between her and Severus, then made her way to her own seat, looking concerned. They saw her whispering to the headmaster and Muriel suppressed a sigh. "Now look what you've done. Are you going to help me or not?"

"I'll meet him if he shows up, but I'm not waiting if he's late, and he'd better be early, because I'm checking him for tracking charms before I take him to Italy at all."

"You know if there's anything dangerous about his intentions the Fonata won't let him enter."

Severus knew he was beat. He nodded silently. Having long since given up on actually eating anything this morning, he left in a swirl of robes that had the entire staff speculating about his thoughts concerning Muriel's impending marriage. Muriel ignored the whispers and picked at her food. She'd sent Lupso to Italy to oversee the wedding preparations. She knew it would all be perfect.

Or it should be. She wanted to have all her friends in attendance, not just the ones in the Order. Unfortunately the only two of her friends who were still alive from Slytherin house were both known Death Eaters. And Lucius was an escapee from Azkaban. She grimaced, remembering the argument she and Sirius had had the last time they'd encountered Lucius.

She'd wanted to bring him back with them, but had little hope of persuading him with Sirius present. The row that had followed had culminated in Sirius hexing Muriel into silence, but not before he'd thrown himself backwards into a wardrobe to avoid a ball of blue flame. In the end neither had explained their reasons. They'd agreed not to discuss it again. Silently. And now she'd invited the man to the wedding.

When she apparated to Italy alone on Saturday morning Severus and Lucius were waiting for her beside the Fontana. Situated in the middle of a lush garden just outside the main entrance, the marble likeness of Poseidon was both source and endpoint of the brook that ran idly around the property, enclosing it in protective magic both powerful and ancient. The fact that Lucius was standing here alive was enough for Muriel, but she knew Dumbledore would take some convincing.

"Has Narcissa arrived?"

"Not yet," Severus answered, his voice tense. Muriel looked amusedly at Lucius, who looked startled.

"You didn't think I'd bring you here and not provide you with a dance partner, did you old friend?" She walked toward them, then, and held out a hand. Lucius sneered at her as if she was insane.

"Your memory is poor, Deesia. The last time you saw me I cast a killing curse at you. We are hardly friends." His voice was cold, but she could feel the desperation he felt at being here. He had accepted her invitation, knowing that it might be his last chance to make contact with someone who cared about him, and knowing, too, that she might just hand him over to Dumbledore for shipment back to Azkaban.

"My memory is excellent. I haven't seen you since I was 14 years old. I've seen the monster your father created since then, but I haven't seen YOU again until just today." Her hand was still held in front of her, and finally he took it.

Severus was a little startled when the tall blond pulled Muriel into a grateful hug. She was a good deal shorter than him, and seemed to disappear for a moment, but he knew better than to worry. If Lucius intended any harm, and Severus wouldn't have put it passed him, the Fontana would have already drowned him.

"OH BLOODY HELL!"

The three turned abruptly to see Sirius standing with Dumbledore. Both men looked furious. Muriel immediately noticed that the normally tranquil brook flowing from the fountain was churning rapidly.

"Let me remind you all that the Fonata Affascinato will defend my invited guests, regardless of who threatens them. I cannot control it." After a tense minute of silence the brook calmed somewhat and Muriel spoke again. "Severus never told me that it was Lucius and he who threatened Avery into leaving me alone. Lucius never got the chance to mention that it was he who kept Gringotts from seizing this place as well as the manor and the family vault when Papa died. He also never told anyone that he's known about Severus' role in the Order since the night I left London." This last revelation surprised her even as she spoke the words and she turned toward him, a smile gracing her features in spite of the gasp of surprise from Severus. She'd suspected that he was aware, because of the odd letter he'd sent Draco declaring her to be an ally. But she certainly hadn't realized that he'd been protecting Severus since the very beginning.

She paused to enjoy the uncommon look of shock in a Malfoy's gray eyes, and felt his mind snap shut. He'd forgotten whom he was dealing with, apparently. She smirked at him briefly before turning back to Dumbledore and Sirius as Severus caught his old house-mate's eye. A look passed between them as she continued. "And I never told any of you that it wasn't he who tortured and killed my bird. Lucius has been a good friend in the only ways that he could, and I wanted him to be here today."

Sirius turned around and walked back through the glass doors that led to the main hall inside. He didn't seem as upset as Muriel had expected. The Fontana's churning didn't lessen, however. Dumbledore still stood, one hand in the pocket of his robes. Muriel knew he probably had a tight grasp on his wand.

"His presence here indicates that he means no harm, Albus," Severus said quietly, gesturing to the fountain. He, too, was inconspicuously holding his wand, though what he thought he'd be able to do with it Muriel wasn't sure. Even Severus was no match for Dumbledore. Finally the headmaster nodded, looking far older than his three former students had ever seen him. There was no twinkle in his eyes.

"Disguise him. The rest of the Order will be here in two hours and this is neither the time nor place to tell them that he's joined." Dumbledore then followed Sirius back into the house. Finally the brook ran smoothly again.

Muriel could feel Lucius' shock. He hadn't really intended to join the Order of the Phoenix when he'd met Severus at the Leaky Cauldron this morning. When she felt his shock turning to annoyance, and then to anger, she spoke quickly.

"I knew you weren't lost to us, Lucius. I couldn't let you continue to live that life. For Merlin's sake, you're a MALFOY. That used to be something to be proud of, but your father turned it into a veritable insult. Think of Draco. His name has brought him far too much grief already."

At this, Lucius closed his eyes. She was right.

Muriel nodded at Severus and went back inside. He would take care of disguising Lucius. She had some things to work out with Sirius.

He was waiting for her at the base of the marble staircase, though he wasn't looking outside, but up to the top of the stairs. That's where she'd be standing while he waited with Remus and Dumbledore down here. He was far calmer than she'd expected, his mind obviously on the coming ceremony rather than the unexpected guest.

When he felt her hand on his arm, he didn't look down. "The Fontana didn't kill him, so he must be safe, but I don't understand how he can cast the killing curse at you one minute and want to attend your wedding the next."

"If we hadn't moved, that curse would still have only hit the floor at our feet. If he'd been trying to hit us, he would have hit Draco when we moved out of the way."

Sirius nodded, then looked back down at her. "You hated him in school."

She smiled, then took his hand. On the way up the marble staircase, she explained what had happened in their 4th year at the Leaky Cauldron. He walked her to the room that had been hers when she stayed with her Aunt Rosa as a child during the summers. She stopped him in the doorway, knowing her dress was hanging just inside.

He appeared to be trying to sneak a look into the room, so she kissed him quickly and closed the door until she was looking at him through just a crack. "Thank you, Sirius."

He only smiled and turned to go. "Lupso will show you where your things are," she called after him as she closed the door.

Muriel turned to look at the dress her Aunt Rosa had sewn for her so many years ago. It had been hanging in this room all these years and wasn't as brilliantly white as she remembered. She tried it on, but had an awful lot of trouble with the clasps on the back. She was only on the first floor, so she stuck her head out the window. Severus was still casting charms on Lucius in the garden below.

"Sev! I need help getting into this dress!" she hollered. The men looked up at her. She could see that Lucius' beautiful hair was now a rather nondescript color of brown.

"Why the hell can't she ever ask me to help her get OUT of a dress," Severus grumbled. He and Lucius laughed quietly as they made their way back into the house. Mur's revelation had been enough to renew their friendship almost instantly. They passed Sirius, who was pacing the main entryway - far too nervous to even look at them, and knocked softly on the door to her room.

Lucius raised a haughty eyebrow at the sight of Muriel in a muggle wedding gown, still looking out the window, but Severus barely noticed. He'd known Aunt Rosa, after all. He had, in fact, seen the dress once when he'd visited her before she'd fallen ill.

"I can't reach the buttons," she said quickly, not turning around.

"You really need some girlfriends," he muttered, buttoning the dress and trying unsuccessfully to stop himself from looking over her shoulder to catch a glimpse of cleavage. Muriel just grinned impishly until he finished. When she turned, both men inhaled sharply.

"What do you think?" Her skirt stood out from her hips, which were cinched just a tad tightly in the fabric. She had been measured for it nearly two decades before, after all. The bodice was low cut and flattering, and every inch of fabric was covered in beautiful glittering beads. Muriel had watched her Aunt Rosa sew them on by hand over the course of several months, in spite of her illness.

"Better than blue jeans," Lucius supplied quickly. He put a hand on Severus' shoulder, hoping to steer him out of the room. Severus didn't move.

"He'd better damned well be good to you, Mur."

An amused expression crossed Mur's face. "If he's not, do you really think there'll be anything left of him for you to deal with?" This comment snapped Severus back to reality. This was not some weak woman he was talking to. This was Muriel Deesia, and he'd better not do anything stupid to upset her today, no matter HOW she looked in that dress. He watched as she tucked her wand into a delicate pocket her aunt had made for exactly that purpose.

"I'm starting to understand how the Weasley boys feel about Ginny," he said finally, knowing that would ease the tension. He heard Lucius let out a breath behind him. He'd obviously been worried that Severus was about to make a fool out of himself. They left the room quickly.

Sirius was still pacing the marble tiled floors as they descended the staircase again. The doors to the garden were thrown open and Dumbledore, who'd already changed into his dress robes, was standing before the fountain at the other end of the garden. The youngest Order members had already arrived. Severus stopped Lucius halfway down the stairs. "What's your name?"

After a pause, Lucius replied, "Lucas Deesia, of course. A distant cousin. For all they know, I live here." He'd changed the timbre of his voice slightly.

Severus nodded. Hardly anyone knew enough about Mur's family to see through that. When they reached Sirius, Severus took one look at him and grimaced.

"Black? She's dressed, don't you think you should get ready?"

"Have you seen Lupso? He's supposed to show me where I need to be." Sirius was obviously distracted beyond the point of reason. Where the hell was his Gryffindor courage today?

Severus rolled his eyes and snapped his fingers as Lucius tried not to smirk. Lupso appeared instantly. "Take Black upstairs and get him ready to be married. Don't let him be late, don't let him look bad, and don't let him leave." Severus paused, but couldn't pass up the opportunity for a parting shot. "And make him wash that greasy hair!"

At this, Sirius finally looked up at him, but all he managed was a rather confused smile before he hurried after the house elf.

"Narci's here," Severus said, leading Lucius back out into the garden.

"Don't let her hear you calling her that. She doesn't appreciate it so much anymore." Lucius stopped long before they reached his wife. "She won't recognize me. I'll just make her uncomfortable."

"You're right. Wait for the dancing and I'll introduce you."

"Who will you dance with, Sev? I don't suppose Muriel invited Manasa?"

"Shut it, Lucius," Severus replied quietly, his voice falling into the silky, dangerous tone that he'd not used all day as he turned to look his old friend in the eye.

"I never touched her, you know," Lucius said quietly. "She only said that to –"

"I said SHUT IT!"

Narcissa, Dumbledore, Harry, Ron, Draco, Ginny and Hermione all turned suddenly at the shout to see Severus pointing a shaking wand at a man they didn't recognize. When he realized what he'd done, he lowered his wand slowly. The rest of the Weasley family arrived from the fireplace in the parlor off the entrance hall at this moment, and Dumbledore immediately struck up a noisy conversation with Arthur to diffuse the situation.

Lucius held his tongue and generally tried not to look out of place while Severus glowered angrily at every plant in the garden. Remus arrived shortly and Severus sent him up to check on Sirius with a few clipped words. They watched Draco talking with his mother, who looked proud to see him there.

The official aurors from the ministry arrived next, including Moody, Tonks and Kingsley. Severus finally shook off his anger and took Lucius around, introducing him as Lucas to anyone who seemed interested to know. If his tone was harsher than usual, no one noticed. If anyone noticed, they were wise enough not to comment.

Chairs seemed to appear out of no where and Severus knew that Aunt Rosa's house elves were probably reveling in their new tasks. They'd had no master for nearly two decades, after all.

Severus watched Mundungus Fletcher stick his hand into the fountain and pull it out as if burnt. From the chair beside him he heard Lucius snort. "Probably trying to pry off a piece of gold from the bottom," Lucius whispered, falling back into the repartee they had shared in school with ease. Mundungus had quite a reputation, and Lucius had been one of many with whom the man had conducted shady dealings in the past. Finally Remus and Sirius joined Professor Dumbledore, who still looked rather more reserved than usual on such an occasion.

Sirius couldn't seem to focus on anything except the marble staircase on the other side of the doors. The entire garden and everyone in it seemed fuzzy. He never noticed when the music began to play, and couldn't have told you later what the song was or where it had come from.

Muriel had left her veil in the room. She walked carefully down the staircase, though she hadn't bothered with shoes. Her dress easily hid this, even on the stairs. Remus winked at her when she finally came through the doors and out into the garden, but she didn't notice. In fact, she wondered later if he'd been there at all. All she saw was Sirius, who took her hands as soon as she was near enough.

"My friends, we have all waited a very long time for today. I am sure that those of us who remember Sirius and Muriel from school have now had sufficient time to get over the shock of their engagement." Dumbledore looked at Sirius, who'd finally looked away from Muriel at this comment. "But only just barely," Dumbledore whispered. Mur and Sirius both grinned.

When the rings were finally exchanged, and Sirius had kissed his bride until she was turning red with embarrassment, the house elves appeared to whisk away chairs and set up a table of food.

_AN: The next chapter is also wedding occurrences, but I can't call for a vote there, so vote here instead! Sirius or Venus? This one should be easy._


	25. Chapter 24 A Price Too High

**Chapter 24 - A Price Too High**

**March, 2010**

After the first dance, Sirius and Muriel managed to look around at their friends a bit. Severus was sitting with several empty shot glasses in front of him, and Muriel was a little worried. She caught the arm of the only unfamiliar face in attendance as he and Narcissa danced past them.

"What's wrong with Sev?" She couldn't ignore the annoyed expression that came over her new husband's face, so she rested her head on his shoulder as Lucius answered carefully. She couldn't see his face from there, but he tightened his arms around her possessively.

"I made the mistake of asking him if Manasa had been invited."

Muriel closed her eyes and swore softly. Severus had told her about Manasa, but she'd got the impression that he'd hate for anyone else to be talking about her. She looked up at Sirius, who looked confused.

"Who's Manasa?" he asked. Lucius steered Narcissa away. Severus had taken her aside before he began drinking himself into oblivion and explained Lucius' presence. After several long-deserved apologies, she'd agreed to dance with him.

Muriel sighed. "The only woman Severus has ever openly admitted to loving. Including his mother. And she left rather abruptly. Just trust me, this isn't good, and the house elves here don't know not to let him drink."

Sirius shook his head, his annoyance of a moment previous already gone. "Go see what you can do," he whispered, "I'll inform Lupso." She smiled a quick thank you and was gone.

Severus was well on his way to uselessness when she sat down beside him and took the shot glass out of his hand. "You could've just asked for a whole bottle, then we wouldn't have so much to clean up."

"Bottles are too conspicuous. I was hoping no one would notice." Obviously his sarcasm was still intact.

She raised an eyebrow. "Shiny shot glasses under a hot Italian sun, surrounding a dashing man wearing too much black and you thought it wouldn't catch anyone's eye?"

He shot her a trademark glare and she smirked back at him. "Lucius tells me you're pouting because you don't have anyone to dance with."

"Lucius is a bloody bastard," he replied. "This has nothing to do with dancing." He made a sweeping motion with one hand that was apparently supposed to indicate the shot glasses. "Where's that damned house elf?"

"Sirius asked them to help you restrain yourself."

Severus muttered something unflattering that Muriel was glad she didn't properly hear, and she stood, eyes flashing, and dragged him onto the dance floor. He immediately put his cheek to the top of her head and let it rest there, hoping against hope that he managed not to cry.

"Don't do this to yourself, Sev. You're stronger than this." She got no response except a shudder that might have been a suppressed sob. "You're stronger than her," she added fiercely. Finally he nodded. When the song ended, she got him some water and led him back to his table, pleased to note that the shot glasses had been replaced with a cup of tea. Lupso was always the best house elf.

"Thanks, Mur."

"I want to see you dancing with Minerva in no less than 10 minutes, and don't step on her –"

Muriel's smirk was wiped of her face instantly as several shouts rang out from the vicinity of the fountain, cutting her off. A wall of water had very suddenly erupted from the entire stream. In instants the Casa was completely encased in a dome of water.

Severus found himself suddenly sober as he and Muriel ran toward the shouts. They pushed their way to the fountain. Through the sheen of the water wall, they could make out two figures, one slumped over the shoulder of the other.

"Come on, Mur! I know you're there." Muriel recognized the jeering voice instantly. Avery.

Sirius appeared beside her a moment later.

"What's he doing here?" she whispered in shock. Sirius shook his head, but the answer came in the form of a challenge.

"Macnair got an interesting owl, Mur, and I just had to know where he was headed, so I followed him." Avery threw the other man down roughly and those who knew him could plainly see that it really was Macnair. Muriel swore.

"He's not dead yet, but he will be soon. I'd advise you to decide carefully who you'll send out to collect him. Who can you most afford to lose, Mur?" Silence fell for several long moments. Only the rushing, churning water of the fountain could be heard. Surely there was some way to make use of the magic of the water, but Avery was standing well enough back to escape it. Mur was sure he knew about the defenses. Hadn't they read about it in History of Magic as children? She couldn't recall.

Anyone else present, with the possible exception of Lucius, would have looked to the headmaster to solve this. Muriel, on the other hand, drew her wand and took several angry steps toward the perimeter before Sirius turned her around by her elbow none too gently.

"No, Mur. Not today. You can put your life on the line some other time. Let me go."

She was just about to scoff at him and ask just how that was any better when a mocking, and very familiar voice cut through the silence.

"What a pathetically juvenile attempt at assassination. I would have expected more originality from a pureblood such as yourself, Avery. Clearly you are not at all up to your usual standard."

Most of the wedding guests were looking around in disbelief and fear, but Mur, Sirius, Severus, Narcissa, and Dumbledore were gazing intently at the brown-haired, plain looking man who stepped out through the wall of water a moment later.

Avery sputtered. He obviously recognized the silky voice even if the face he was presented with was unfamiliar. Lucius smirked. "But I should be thankful. Your ridiculous antics have provided me with something I lacked."

Severus took out his wand and ended the enchantments on Lucius at this point, and nearly everyone gasped, including Avery, who looked very afraid. And rightly so.

"You see," Lucius continued, idly levitating Macnair towards the safety of the Fontana, "I came to this wedding rather unprepared. I was so startled by the invitation that I did not have time to procure a suitable gift."

With Macnair within the safety of the wall of water, Lucius paused to let the implications of what he'd just said sink in, expecting more of the same cringing, fearful behavior from his one-time ally. What he got instead was a rather nasty hex, one that he himself had helped Voldemort design. Severus recognized it as soon as it was uttered and charged toward Lucius who'd managed to raise his wand in spite of the pain.

Just as he broke the barrier, he heard Lucius utter the killing curse. Avery was dead before Severus reached Lucius' side. The wall of water abruptly fell back into the shallow divot that set its course. Only Muriel, Narcissa, and a very cautious Draco ran toward Lucius and Severus. Mur could tell by the look on the men's faces that this was more serious than what had been done to Macnair.

She caught Severus' eye and he shook his head slightly. Lucius had whispered something to Narcissa and she was already crying. He directed his gaze to Muriel, who fought back her tears and met his eyes.

"Best wedding present I could have come up with," he said quietly, one elegant hand gesturing toward Avery. Mur couldn't even nod. Severus explained the curse later. It was an Arithmancy nightmare that she would spend the next year testing counter curses for before she could successfully stop it from killing, though she never found a way to get around the pain.

Sirius and Severus led Muriel back inside as Dumbledore took Lucius to an upstairs bedroom, Narcissa and Draco trailing. No one ever heard him cry out, though Severus told them that the pain was nearly as bad as the Cruciatus curse. Perhaps it was the knowledge that Draco was present that gave him the strength.

Narcissa left that night for France, too upset herself to be of any comfort to her son, who was trying desperately to make sense of things. He sat in the library watching Hermione as she went morosely from one bookshelf to the next, scanning titles. Ron followed her, as much because he didn't know what to say to Draco as because it was his habit to do so.

Harry just sat beside him, his eyes on the fire that crackled before them. When Draco turned around in his seat, tearing his eyes away from Ron and Hermione, Harry looked up.

"I found him and lost him all in the same day," Draco said quietly. Harry only nodded. It had been like that for him in their third year when the dementors had forced him to hear his parents' voices for the first time. After some companionable silence, Harry told him that. Draco only nodded. The night passed in silence, disturbed only by the cracking of logs in the fireplace and the clatter of teaspoons when the house elves brought tea up to them, unasked.

In an upstairs sitting room, Muriel, Sirius, Severus and Remus sat in a similar state. Muriel had immediately demanded full equations to explain the Arithmancy behind the spell that had killed Lucius, and she sat pouring over what little Severus had been able to provide. She could see plainly that it was way out of his league and probably wrong. Lucius must have been brilliant at Arithmancy to have designed such a spell.

Sirius sent Lupso to check on Draco several times, something Severus didn't fail to notice and appreciate. He always got the same report. Silence.

Dumbledore, Molly Weasley, Ginny, and Madam Pomfrey were all in the next room, hovering around Macnair, who was still unconscious. Most everyone else had dispersed.

It was the kind of day that couldn't end well, no matter how it ended. Macnair finally awoke around three in the morning, and Severus and Muriel went to sit with him. He told them what had happened with Avery, and they told him he owed his life to Malfoy, which caused another lengthy silence. Lucius had always been careful with his secrets, so everyone was still in shock at his attendance. When Poppy shooed them out the door, Severus headed up another flight of stairs to the guestroom he'd always used when he'd visited as a child. It hadn't been often, but he remembered which one was his.

Muriel wandered into the library, summoning Lupso as she went. Sirius was already standing behind Harry's chair, gazing stoically into the fire. Mur decided to talk to Ron and Hermione first.

"Lupso has a room prepared for you if you'd like to stay the night instead of returning to London," she said quietly, sitting down at the table with them. Hermione looked up from a book, but her eyes were glazed, and Mur could tell she hadn't been reading.

"Thanks," Ron said, standing. He cast a look over to Draco and Harry, then pulled Hermione up from her chair. She appeared to be in shock, and Muriel could understand. It was hard to feel such righteous hatred for someone for years only to mourn him when he died.

"Take her book with you. She may want to read it someday," Mur told him as Hermione followed Lupso out. She turned to see Harry getting up as well. Mur summoned another elf to show him his room. He looked exhausted. Maybe they all did. She joined Sirius by the fire.

Draco knew who was with him, and was a little surprised that the Potions Master had not come to find him. He finally looked around at them when Muriel snapped her fingers to summon yet another house elf.

"Prepare the room adjacent to Severus' for Mr. Malfoy." The room was not often used, and she'd planned on him staying on this floor with Harry, but she knew he'd want to talk to Severus, so it made more sense this way. The elf bobbed its head and disappeared.

"How did you come to be friends with him? How did you know he didn't really want to follow Voldemort?" Draco's voice was wavering a bit. Being called Mr. Malfoy was disconcerting now that he was the ONLY living Mr. Malfoy.

"I never had a decent conversation with Lucius until my fourth year in school – his seventh. We'd seen one another at social events for years. Once he'd even performed a counter curse for me when Sirius turned my head into a pumpkin," here she paused to shoot a glance at Sirius, whose face was blank.

"But he was so arrogant about it that I never gave it a second thought. After all, my blood was as good as his. He had no right to be condescending. The very next year I was sorted into Ravenclaw. He was one of the few who didn't call me a blood traitor, and I think it was only his fondness for Severus that prevented it. Most of the rest of the house had to be hexed into silence."

"In my fourth year, my mother sent me a howler and he took the opportunity to insult one of my friends. He very nearly hexed Harry's father, but I got to it first. I stunned Potter and turned on Lucius. I gave him a chance to back down before I actually dueled with him. He did. Several of the Slytherins told Malfoy Sr. about it, and the next Hogsmeade weekend, Lucius was punished. You recall the hex he used on you in the cave? The cuts your grandfather inflicted were much deeper. I had apparated to London to buy clothing and I noticed him in the Leaky Cauldron, blood seeping through his robes. Against his wishes, I took him upstairs and did my best to heal him. For the first time he was neither arrogant, nor rude. Nothing like the man I knew at all, in fact. If anything, he was downright humble. We spoke briefly about parental expectations. He never said he hated who he'd become, but then, he was talking to me, so he didn't HAVE to say it. I understood."

Muriel took a deep breath, and Draco, who'd been listening raptly, took the opportunity to ask another question. "Why did he say that killing Avery was his wedding present to you?"

Muriel sat silently, her gaze on the dying fire. It was Sirius who answered. "Mal – Lucius probably found out from Severus that Avery tried to rape Mur later that year. Apparently the next summer, he and Severus tracked Avery down and put him in the hospital." He'd heard her hint as much earlier, and he remembered that Avery had been late getting to school at the start of the following year.

"I've never met anyone I wanted dead more than Avery," Mur said, standing quickly. She'd taken two steps before she turned back to them. "But not at such a high price."

The house elf who'd left to prepare Draco's room reappeared, then, and they said goodnight. On the way to their own room, they met Macnair going to his. Muriel stopped him in the hall, since he appeared to be well recovered.

"You should get back to Beauxbaton," she said quietly, "before Severus finds out what you're hiding from him."

Macnair swallowed hard and nodded. Sirius, remembering that it was Macnair who'd wanted to kill Buckbeak, and who'd been happy to bring a dementor into Hogwarts to suck out his soul, couldn't find any remorse for the man, in spite of the spasm of fear that crossed his features.

He changed direction abruptly and disappeared. Sirius knew better than to ask what the man was hiding. It was nearly four in the morning on the longest day he'd lived through since James and Lily were killed. He just wanted to get to sleep.

"Goodnight, Mur," he mumbled when they finally climbed into bed. He put his arms around her and buried his face in her hair. Muriel cried silently, careful not to let her body shake. She'd given Lucius back his life today only to have it taken from him too soon. It wasn't beyond her to cry for the man he could have become. Finally, near dawn, the comfort of Sirius arms and his even breath on her neck lulled her to sleep.


	26. Chapter 25 Making Up

Quick AN: This was written long ago, when the story was first posted, and somehow got left out! I have one more chapter to this fic, which I'll post tomorrow. The fics that follow don't make much sense w/o it, so I apologize for the inconvenience.

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**Draco vs. Venus: Match Point**

Chapter 25 -Making Up

February, 2011

"Fancy meeting two of the world's most powerful wizards in a dingy muggle joint like this." Draco, sitting across from Harry, recognized the voice behind him instantly, though he hadn't heard it in at least two years. This pub had been Harry's idea.

Draco's eyes narrowed, but he didn't move. "You set me up," he said to Harry in a dangerous voice. Harry suppressed a grin as Ava came to the side of their booth. She stood briefly.

"Well, I was forward enough to show up, Draco. I hope you won't make me invite myself to sit down as well." Her voice was playful, and he realized that time had healed some of her pain. Still, he didn't look at her, but gestured gracefully toward Harry's end of the table, shoving his hands back into his pockets afterward.

Harry moved over and Ava sat. A small crystal vase of violets appeared in front of her with a POP! She and Draco both jumped. "Well, that narrows things down a bit." Ava said, looking from Draco to Harry. "Let's see," she continued, "Draco looks furious and Harry looks smug. I'm going to take a guess here. Draco left me flowers for an entire year and Harry wanted me to know about it, so he conjured these?"

"Excuse me," Harry said suddenly as a waitress went by. She stopped and turned to look at them. "Where's the lavatory?" Having received directions, Harry left quickly.

"If you are here for an apology I don't have one to give. I did what I thought was best for everyone. That inquiry was absolutely necessary." His voice was angry, but when he looked up at her, his lips closed to a tight line, he could see that she was wearing a small, sad smile.

"I'm not here for an apology, Draco. Although I must say that if you'd told me what you suspected from the beginning the whole unpleasantness could have been avoided." Her voice was cool.

"Yes, well, if you hadn't run the other direction every time I tried to talk to you, perhaps I would have." Draco's heart was pounding and he couldn't tell if it was anger, or a mounting panic at being in her presence again. He thought sarcastically to himself that a 20-year-old man should have long since outgrown panicking over a woman.

"You're right about that, of course." He looked up, not sure for a moment if she was responding to his words or his thoughts. He'd been spending too much time with Mur. "I was still very frightened of who I was and I hadn't come to terms with what I'd done." She was whispering now. "I couldn't explain it to you because I couldn't explain it to myself. And you couldn't ask if you couldn't find me."

They sat together in silence, Ava looking at her hands as Draco studied her face. He wanted desperately for her to look up again. Finally he said, "Ron and Hermione got married you know." She caught his eyes, and he was surprised to see her flash him a mischievous grin.

"I know. I was there. I borrowed Harry's invisibility cloak for the occasion." She saw that he was looking at her incredulously. His mouth was open, but he seemed to be at a loss for words, so she explained. "It was right in the middle of the inquiry, and I knew you would be there. I didn't want to say something that would cause a scene. I was still pretty angry with you." Draco snapped his mouth shut, then, not really sure how to take that.

"So you aren't angry with me anymore?" he asked finally. It sounded a bit like pleading, and Draco kicked himself mentally for being so vulnerable.

"No. It's good that you forced the inquiry. It made it public knowledge that I was no relation to Voldemort." Draco cringed as she continued. "I would never have known that half the school associated me with him if you hadn't made your pronouncement." She was talking fast now, and before she knew what she'd said, she added, "And you would have had a much worse evening, that's for sure."

"What do you mean?" Draco's eyes were wide. Harry had returned, and he slid into the booth beside Ava.

"Oh, are we all the way up to Hogsmeade, now?" he asked. Draco looked at him with a confused expression while Ava flagged down a waitress.

"Yes, and no yelling so far," she replied glibly, then to the waitress, "I think we could all use some tea." When the waitress left, she glanced at Draco and added, "You're probably going to need it."

"You remember, Draco, that night after Ava disappeared? You and Ron and I went to the Hog's Head and you went for a walk. You woke up in the room and Ron and I told you you'd been stunned and someone had taken all your galleons." Harry was watching Draco carefully as he spoke. He hadn't really wanted to be here for this part of the story, as it was the only time he'd ever lied to his friend, and he wasn't sure he wanted to fess up to it.

"I asked them to tell you that," Ava broke in, sensing Harry's discomfort. "It wasn't a random attack." She paused, deciding how to continue. "It was that night that I first met your father, Lucius." Draco's eyes were wide now. "He and I were both in the Hog's Head that evening, and when he followed you out I did too. Your little outburst from that afternoon gave me the information I needed to bluff him. I told him that I would be angry if he took you and my displeasure would certainly make my father angry. He bought it. Good thing, too. A first year student at Hogwarts would have certainly come off the worse in a duel with Lucius Malfoy." She shivered.

Ava and Harry were both looking nervously at Draco now. Neither was really sure what he would do and their fears were confirmed as his fist hit the table. His eyes were flashing and a stray lock of yellow hair had fallen down around one eye. "And I just BET Weasley kept those galleons, too!" Ava giggled and Harry let out a sigh of relief as Draco began to laugh.


	27. Chapter 26 You Don't Have To Go

**Remus vs. Venus: Match Point**

Chapter 26 -You Don't Have To Go

March, 2011

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"Morning, Mur, you're up early!" Theda came into the kitchen, arms full of parchment as usual. 

Muriel looked up from her coffee and smiled. "Morning! Sirius left on another unexpected errand for the Order. He can't seem to get ready in the morning without waking me up!"

Theda laughed. "After a year of marriage, you still haven't learned to sleep through all that?" She asked. She shook her head in mock disappointment. "By the time I'd been married a year I'd bought a second pillow to put OVER my head when the lights went on!"

Muriel rolled her eyes. "Well, what are you doing awake at this hour? And where's Remus? Isn't he usually attached to your shoulder?"

Theda stuck out her tongue and grimaced. "Off again," she said, sighing quietly.

"Off again as in: Out of town on Order business? Or off again meaning that he's decided again that no one can possibly love a werewolf, so you must be playing with him?"

"Bingo. It happens right after every full moon. He's usually over it in a few days, though." Theda smiled. She knew Muriel could read her thoughts, and when they'd first met, that had made her uncomfortable. They had gotten very close in the last four years, however, and Theda was starting to wonder how she ever managed to communicate with anyone else. 'You very nearly don't,' she reminded herself, thinking of Remus' refusal to believe in her love.

Muriel snorted, hearing the conversation Theda was having with herself, and both women smiled. "I told you what I it took to make Sirius believe me."

"Yeah. I'm just not sure I can do that." Theda poured herself some coffee and sat down as Muriel gave her a questioning look.

"If I do, and he still doesn't believe me, I'm the one who'll be hurt," Theda explained quietly. Muriel cast her eyes down to the table. That was very true, but she didn't think Remus would do that. In spite of his insecurities, she knew that Remus loved Theda very much.

"Well, I'd better get these to Dumbledore," Theda said finally.

Muriel nodded. "Why so many?"

Theda gathered the scrolls back up off the table, where she'd set them down to talk. "Well, there were a lot of ways this story could go, and the things we'll have to change to bring everyone home will probably be more drastic than Dumbledore wants. I thought if I had a story with me for every 'What If' he has, I'll be more likely to convince him that every change is necessary."

"You're upset about this one?" Muriel asked calmly. She could feel that something else was bothering her friend.

"Actually, no. I think this will work out fine. I'm worried about something else, but I'm not really ready to talk about it yet. I was planning to discuss it with Dumbledore today."

Muriel nodded. It was hard to remember sometimes that this was war, and procedures had to be followed, in spite of friendship. She watched her friend head toward the fireplace and sighed.

Theda came out of the Headmaster's office feeling thoroughly drained. But Dumbledore had agreed to make the changes that were necessary. He'd fought particularly hard about sending Draco and his amulet on this mission. It meant the amulet would be destroyed, but it also meant that Draco and the rest would come home practically unscathed. In the end, Dumbledore had to agree that their lives were more important than the amulet.

But it was the rest of the conversation that worried her most. In the four years she'd spent with the Order of the Phoenix, Theda had never once finished a story without another one popping immediately into her head. Sometimes they came to her so quickly that she had to stop working on one story to write another before she forgot it. Now, suddenly, it was as if the river had dried up. Dumbledore had looked at her gravely as she explained this. When she was finished, he'd remained silent for quite some time before asking her why she thought this might be.

"I think that I might be about to overlap someone else's prophesy. My understanding is limited, but I believe that any single event can only be prophesied once." Dumbledore had only nodded.

Lost in thought, Theda didn't look up in time to see Severus Snape before she walked right into him. Thankfully, he caught her before she fell, an amused expression on his face. Theda laughed shortly.

"Sorry, Sev," she said, unconsciously using Muriel's nickname for him. Severus had changed a great deal in the time since Muriel came back to Hogwarts. He was no longer required to pose as a Death Eater, and the relative safety of his position at the school and with the Order, combined with her renewed friendship had been good for him.

"In a hurry today?" He asked, an eyebrow raised.

"No, just distracted. To be honest, this is the first day I haven't been in a hurry in years." She smiled up at him, and was surprised when he offered his arm.

"Good, then you can join Mur and me for lunch."

Theda realized she was starving, having missed breakfast while she spoke with the Headmaster. She took his arm and they joined Muriel at the staff table.

It was nearly two o'clock by the time she got back to Grimmauld place, and she felt as if she'd finally come to a decision. As Muriel and Severus had talked quietly over lunch, she'd thought back on Muriel's advice from the morning. Maybe if she really wanted to be with Remus, she was going to have to take a few risks.

She'd hardly entered her room when she heard him knock. It was two days since the full moon, and he'd been distant all that time. She knew this was their monthly fight, and she knew she wasn't going to listen to it anymore. Before she invited him in, she pulled out her wand.

"Come in," she said quietly.

The door opened noisily and Remus stuck his head in. "There you are. I was hoping we could talk."

Theda took a deep breath. "What do you want to talk about Remus?" she asked wearily. After all, she already knew the answer. She sat down on the bed to wait, her hand resting inconspicuously on her wand.

"Well, I wanted to talk about us. You see, I just don't think - "

"Silencio!" she said forcefully, bringing her wand up at just the right moment. "You finally got it right, Remus," she said sweetly. "We've been having this talk every month for the last year, and you finally stopped in the right place." She spoke very slowly. "You. Just. Don't. Think."

His mouth had fallen open and he was shaking his head. She smiled at him again so he would know that she wasn't angry, and patted the bed beside her. He sat down, and immediately she leaned over and kissed him. When she pulled away, she saw the sad look in his eyes. He was shaking his head again.

"Alright, go then if you want to," she said quietly. In response, he took her hand, as if pleading with her to understand. "No, if this is what you want, then go." She had tried. She watched him leave, knowing that Molly Weasley, who had a room on the third floor, where Remus slept, would be able to remove the silencing charm. She sighed. Maybe Muriel's plan was the only thing that would get through to him.

As she did every afternoon, she sat down at her desk to write, but nothing came to her. Instead, she thought about what Professor Trelawney had taught her about real prophesies. They couldn't overlap. Whatever was going to happen next must have already been prophesied. Dumbledore had repeated for her the prophesy about Harry Potter and Lord Voldemort. She knew that her sudden inability to predict might mean that their last confrontation was at hand. It was more than she could take. She needed to talk to Remus.

'But you can't talk to Remus. He doesn't want you.' Her mind seemed to be taunting her. In the end, she decided that an afternoon nap might be best. She wasn't doing anything useful anyway. She undressed slowly and climbed under the covers. Her sleep was uneasy, and plagued by the kind of dreams muggles have: dreams that are scary but without meaning, dreams that can't be remembered and won't come true. The kind of dreams that she hadn't had in over four years.

She awoke suddenly, aware immediately that it was very late. They'd let her sleep through dinner. Not sure what had awoken her, she sat up. There was a quiet knock on the door.

"Come in."

Remus came into the room slowly, a sheepish look on his face. "Did I wake you?"

"Yes, but I've slept long enough." He only nodded. When he came over to the bed, she moved over to let him sit down, holding the covers around her shoulders.

"I just came in to tell you that Dumbledore's sending us on another mission. We're going to leave in a few hours. I didn't want to go without saying goodbye." He looked at the floor as he spoke, avoiding her gaze. He didn't want to discuss what happened earlier. Maybe this time he'd be strong enough to really let her go. He knew it was too much to ask, expecting her to put up with his monthly transformations. He didn't want her to have to worry about all that. There was too much to worry about these days as it was.

"I didn't write about anything today," she said worriedly.

"No, there's been no story about this one." He knew that would upset her. She'd gotten used to a certain amount of control over the fates of the Order members. Honestly, he was a little worried himself. It was unusual for anything really important to happen before she wrote the story for it. And he knew this one was going to be really important. Dumbledore had summoned nearly everyone to Hogwarts.

Theda hesitated. Should she tell him why she hadn't been able to write? Would the knowledge protect him? She didn't know. All she knew was that she didn't want him to go. She sat in silence as he said goodbye. When he stood and leaned down to kiss her forehead, she finally found her voice.

"You don't have to go, Remus," she whispered.

He looked into her eyes. She'd always seemed so strong and in control. Now she just looked scared. "You know I do, Dumbledore and the others are counting on me," he answered quietly. She shook her head.

He left her room quickly, closing the door behind him, and went downstairs. He was surprised to find Sirius sitting at the kitchen table with a brand new bottle of fire whiskey. He hadn't found him here more than a handful of times since the wedding.

He raised an eyebrow. "Not you too?"

"Nope," Sirius said cheerfully. "This is for you." He pushed the untouched glass over to his friend.

"She's right then? I've really done this every month like clockwork, haven't I?" He was amazed to think that his best friend had been able to predict this so easily. Maybe he really was just being a prat.

The smile faded from Sirius' face and he nodded. "Yeah, Moony, you have. Mur says you're putting that girl through hell. How did she take it this time?"

Remus managed a faint smile. "She used a silencing charm. She didn't even let me say it. But she's definitely acting strangely." He paused, watching, as his friend poured him a drink. He downed it quickly. His eyes fell shut as he swallowed, and when he opened them, he caught Sirius' amused expression.

"What did she say?" Sirius prompted. Muriel had told him the advice she'd given Theda. He found it amusing that the girls were ganging up on his friend.

"I told her I'd be leaving in a few hours, and she said I didn't have to go. All these years, she's never said that about a mission for the Order, except the one time you ran into Wormtail. Maybe he has something to do with it." Remus had a revolted look on his face. "I do wish Harry had let us kill him. You would have been cleared when we brought his body back to the castle, and this might all be over by now."

Remus looked longingly at the bottle of firewhiskey as he spoke, not seeing it. For this reason, he was unaware that Sirius was valiantly stifling his laughter. "Moony, go back to that first part. She said you didn't have to go?"

Remus looked up, startled. "Yeah, I got up to leave and - "

Sirius cut him off. "Oh, Remus, you stupid git!" he exclaimed vehemently. "She wasn't talking about the mission for the Order!"

"What?" Remus asked, obviously still not quite understanding. Sirius smirked at him indecently until something clicked behind his friend's eyes. "You don't think she meant - " The look on Padfoot's face was enough to answer the unfinished question. Remus looked back down at the empty glass in front of him.

Sirius couldn't help but laugh out loud at the look of shock on his friend's face. His laughter soon died, however, when he realized that Remus wasn't moving.

"Well?" He asked finally. "Aren't you going to go back up there?"

Remus didn't look up at him. "What would I say? 'Hey I just figured out what you meant, and decided that would be fun?' I don't think that would go over very well." His voice was bitter, and Sirius was surprised. It wasn't often that Remus was anything but mild tempered.

"NO!" Sirius said forcefully. "The first thing you should say is 'I'm sorry.' You can improvise from there."

Finally Remus looked up, a slow smile spreading across his face. "I owe her an apology for this afternoon anyway."

Sirius grinned impishly back at him, and watched as Remus jumped up from the bench and practically ran up the stairs.

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AN: To be continued – in another fic (already posted) called "I Would Choose to be With You". 

So, this is your last voting opportunity. Who wins? The boys or Venus? Let me know and I'll post the final results with the Epilogue. Thanks again to everyone who reviewed!


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